The feral
by Asuhole
Summary: Levi is out hunting for his clan. Amidst the hunting, he spots a strange, feral behaving boy. Tribe!fic.
1. The Stranger

I suggest you to settle the reading format as 1/2 for a better reading experience. Thank you.

I am to mention that this is a tribe!fic.

I have no certain knowledge of tribes, clans, vikings etc.  
However, it has been fun writing this.  
Notice that there are supernatural things included in the story, as well as fantasy beliefs and creatures.

Levi and Eren are above seventeen in this fic, nearly of same age.

* * *

There are many different people in the world, Levi realizes.

Some are just a bit different in an unique, unexplainable way.

Coming from a somewhat noble tribe, he knows that all too well when he goes out to hunt or goes from clan to clan to exchange goods or things alike. He has a good position where he is. Not as the highest, but not as the lowest either. He is respected – known throughout the landscapes as the best hunter in the area.

Being where he is, he meets many different people, as well as many different tribes or clans. Some smaller than others – and some big enough to manage a city sized region. His own clan is properly sized as well, and he is close to the chief managing the crowd – Erwin.

There are many different clans with different priorities – clothing styles or varied ways of hunting. Levi's clan does not call themselves Vikings, although they remind of the term. A mix in between, perhaps. Here where they are, on the borderline of another region, there are not just Vikings around, so Levi gets the chance to see many different variations.

Levi himself mainly stands for the hunting – sometimes he prefers to head out alone so that he will not get disturbed. He hates getting dirty though, which often occurs as a problem when he has to wait between the high grasses, closely pressed against the humid earth, cornering a mammal. He prefers to hunt with people who do not talk too much, although he harbors a certain fondness for one of his hunting partners, Hange, who does nothing but to talk. However, she is the one laying out the tactics amidst the sessions, and that is an important thing too.

Most tribes have languages. They know how to communicate with one another – the most common language in the areas being the language spoken in his clan. He has only once met a clan that did not have a 'spoken' language – where the people communicated through yapped hissing and strange grunting. It was a foreign experience, but fascinated him as well.

* * *

Right now, he has headed out alone. He is usually careful when going out, especially in the Magnus woods, where peculiar creatures loom around. It is known as well for being heavily spiritually influenced – one has to be careful not to upset the spirits resting between the moss and trees. He walks with his bow tightly clutched in his hand, although he has not drawn out an arrow yet. The atmosphere feels different today, now that he is paying attention to the forest and environment in general.

He does not feel like hunting today, honestly. He does it anyway, though – not with as much heart as usual, but more likely to spend some time and to get peace to his mind. He settles underneath the shade of a plants´ enormous leaf, it reminding of a bush from a view from the distance. He mushes one knee against the earth, squatting. Then, he waits.

The forest is rich of life – it being filled with both bugs and mammals. Nothing big has come yet, nothing to catch his interest. Patience is required, something he has a lot of when he feels like it. It had been an issue in the beginning of hunting, but now he can sit a position akin to this for several of hours – just to prowl out a target.

Then it comes. Just as he heaves out a sigh of slight uneasiness, a branch snapping resounds in his ears. The bugs stop buzzing, and everything turns quiet. Levi straightens in his back and perks up, one hand sent picking an arrow up from the pouch on his back – soundlessly and gracefully.

An animal reminding of a cougar protrudes a little further ahead – between the trees, slowly trotting forward. Its whiskers wiggle when it sniffs the air delicately, big ears flickering to catch up on any noises around it. It is huge and beautiful – with coal black fur and taunting yellow eyes. It is not just a cougar though, given the size – along with the feathery like bumps sticking up along its spine and the small but jagged looking horns lined above each of its eyes – three in a row. It is a majestic creature, and not one Levi has expected to encounter just today as he has armored himself with only but a bow, arrows, his leather shirt and loose downy pants. He curses inanely under his breath, but it only comes out as soft breathing – careful not to make sudden noises.

He can hear his heart hammering against his rib cage, and he swallows heavily. He gets the rush that he loves – the adrenaline kick he always seeks when he is out hunting. He adjusts himself the slightest, advancing his bow as he lines up the arrow quietly, the only noise being the strain when it budges by command.

The air is humid and warm, and the cougar trots a little closer, looking around without a care, and it leans down and presses its nose just above the moss on the ground, sniffing out a scent. Levi waits for the right moment, and he can feel cold sweat underneath his clothes, even if he made sure to wear something lighter than the usual before getting here.

His wrist budges a bit and a tremble play in his fingers – the adrenaline rushes throughout his veins. Just a bit more. A little closer. He waits. Just as he is about to release the strain of the bow, he sees something behind the cougar. Something on the other side of the animal, further ahead. He spots the unbelievable. Big turquoise eyes, mussed brown hair – decorating feathers attached here and there and red painting streaked on tanned cheeks.

A boy.

The surprise makes Levi do something a hunter should never do. A pressure leaves his lungs and he gasps, inhaling sharply afterwards – puzzled by the moment itself. His insides turn cold when the cougar jerks up – and suddenly yellow eyes are granting their stare on him, scrutinizing him with vehement curiosity. Levi does not get to react before a raw and piercing yell fills the air, and the cougars ears line up on its head, catching noises appearing from behind it.

It all happens so quickly. The boy launches himself on the cougar with such a force it tackles the animal to the ground. The cougar trashes around and raises itself, now with the stranger on its back. It looks surreal – the way the boy stretches forward and locks his arms around the throat of the cougar, and the cougar is in an alarmed state where its hind legs slide underneath it and it falls to the ground, wrenching its back feverishly. The boy is panting heavily, making feral noises reminding of growling as one of his hands disappears underneath the huge fur cloak he is wearing.

Seconds later, Levi scrunches his eyes half-closed when he catches the glimpse of something shiny in the boy's hand, and the boy raises his arm and jabs the object into the cougar's throat violently – repeatedly. For every hit and every strike, blood dribbles down his arm and flings in the air.

The boy only stops when the cougar stops moving entirely and flops to the ground with a final whimper, such a mighty creature dwindling to the ground. Blood puddles around it and sinks into the moss, and the boy's arm is covered in the red fluid. The boy sits on the back of the creature for a minute or two, still panting harshly – and Levi can see his shoulders heave up and down despite wearing the huge cloak.

Levi flinches visibly when the boy turns around in a whisk, and wide turquoise eyes scrutinize him. The boy does not say a word, but raises himself slowly, tilting his head slowly in a curious manner – body language obvious and certain. He jumps down from the cougar and trots a little closer, although hesitant, and Levi never thought of this as a possible thing to happen, so he sits completely still.

However, seconds later he dig his heels into the ground from where he sits, ready to pounce up just in case. He had dropped his bow to the ground before, but quickly scrambles it into his hands again and advances it, lining an arrow up at the boy – warningly.

The boy does not seem threatened at all, though, and only moves closer – craning his neck by now in obvious fascination. This is where Levi gets a better view of the boy in general, and he has to be honest: he has never seen such a raw look in another human's eyes.

The boy has paint on his face – white dots in a row along his cheeks and red claw looking marks on each cheek underneath the dots. A thick line streaks vertically on his forehead, as well as stuttering streaks on his chin, which stretches upwards and stops just on his plump lower lip.

The boy takes another step forward, back hunched over, blood still dribbling down the arm he attacked the cougar with – and Levi notices the dagger in his hand, the object that must have shined before from the reflection of sunlight shimmering through the crowns of the tall trees.

He looks primal and raw overall – wearing a cream-colored fur cloak, a thin leather scrap strewn across his chest with his stomach bare and a tribal quilt in varied lengths on his hips with different layers of leather on. He does not wear shoes, but long leather wraps around his angles and shins, plus a cloth around his left knee. Besides that, he has feathers and peculiar attachments lingering to his hair and neck hair, and other wraps around his biceps and wrists. To levi, a whole story is written all over the body, and he takes in the rest of the body painting with his eyes – primarily a white color used and scribbled in patterns on the boy's arms, legs and stomach.

The boy himself is very muscular and quite tall - has tanned skin, teal eyes and brown fuzzy hair, and he does not look like a boy at all – the only thing telling Levi that might be the case are those huge, almond shaped eyes – eyeing him intensely. The boy might even be older than himself, he thinks.

Levi flinches when the boy squats down right in front of him – and when did he get so close? In the foreign encounter with another culture, Levi has forgotten how the boy has continued to lean in, and now the boy is nearly huddled between Levi's legs, leaning forward with an unexplainable look in his teal eyes. Levi realizes that he has drawn his bow back, it pointing to the ground now as the boy leans in – not a sound escaping his lips.

Levi breathes heavily and grits his teeth, baring them as his upper lip does a tick, and the boy flinches in return, mouth opening just slightly. Then those plump lips pull a bit back and a deep rumble sounds somewhere in the boy's throat – so deep and practiced it must have started in the chest and travelled up to his now agape lips. Those eyebrows furrow a bit and he growls again as he gets no answer from Levi, who only stares in return, not moving an inch. After a while of silence, the boy huffs and makes a clicking noise, surprising Levi by leaning to the left, inspecting Levi's features from another angle.

''Who-'' Levi whispers, and his voice is rusty and the word clogs in his throat. The sudden change makes the boy flinch away quickly, although he leans in again, this time much closer – staring at Levi's mouth. Levi looks the other way and clears his throat, and when he looks back, the boy leans down and presses his face against the juncture of Levi's throat and shoulder, making Levi gasp and try to wriggle away. The boy only but holds him in place with each hand on his biceps as he keeps him in place, and Levi remembers that the boy's right arm is smeared in blood and probably filth too, much to his dismay.

Levi does not fight it though – because he knows better than to trash around in a situation like this, although he has never experienced anything reminding the least of this encounter. Somehow, it reminds him of the stories the elder members of the tribe have told – stories where they have met predators during circumstances where they were in no state to fight back. They had all just sat still, letting the animal sniff around until it got bored and trotted away. Nevertheless, not all had been lucky for the animal to leave without serving a scratch though. Some had not made it back alive, Levi also knows.

He hears how the boy takes a deep inhale, catching the scent of musk and sweat gathered in the crook of his neck. His warm breath fans over the pale skin and Levi lets out a delicate gasp. ''Who are you?'' Levi grits out, and he questions himself why he does not feel afraid or as if in danger, despite the stranger looming all over him. Something turns in his stomach by the thought of the cougar's blood getting on his clothing, and he furrows his brows and lets out an annoyed huff.

Another rumble sounds from the boy. Levi can almost feel the boy's throat vibrate close to him, and it gives him a somewhat pleasant and relaxed feeling he certainly should not be feeling. He nearly spasms when he feels something warm and wet against his skin, and realizes that the boy is lapping the fluid gathered there. Levi's body scrunches up and a strange sensation crawls from his shoulders to his gut, making him wheeze involuntarily by the surprise.

When he tries to shy away, the boy growls again – deeper this time – demanding. The boy withdraws himself slightly in order to look Levi in the eyes, and from the lack of distance Levi can even spot just a few freckles speckled on the tanned skin, see how feather-like his eyelashes are as they flutter prettily – long and slender. The boy draws one of his hands up to his face, pointing at himself. When he opens his mouth and lets out a few vocals, Levi realizes that he is actually speaking – even if it is only a word. ''Eren,'' he says.

''Your name is Eren?'' Levi repeats, and the boy does not seem to understand the first words, but reacts to the mentioned word or name, nodding somehow excitedly.

Levi understands.

''Levi,'' he says and points to himself, letting go of his bow and arrow, swallowing heavily. Eren, as it seems his name is, repeats it a few couple of times before he gets it right, eyes looking curious and fascinated all the while. Then he abruptly leans downwards and closer again, shutting his eyes as he presses his lips to Levi's jawline and drags them up to his ear. When Eren gets to his ear, Levi can hear him breathe out heavily, and it makes his shoulders hunch up and his stomach feel warm.

''What do you want?'' Levi whispers, feeling confused by the way his body is reacting to Eren's presence. Eren does not seem react to his words this time, all but dragging his lips along Levi's jawline once more and then down his throat, sometimes opening his mouth just slightly so that Levi can feel the teeth scrape there.

Levi's stomach begins to feel warm, and a strain in his lower regions start to swell underneath his skin, making his breathing heavier and his heart beat faster. He can hear his temples beating in his ears, shutting out the other noises of forest life around them. ''Stop,'' he says – not sure if he means it or not, puzzled by the circumstances altogether, and Eren still does not react. In fact, Levi finds the wind knocked out of him when Eren pushes him onto his back, and he lets out a surprised 'oomph' and now his bow and arrow is lying between his legs. Eren straddles him, standing above him on all four, looking down at him.

The difference is in those teal eyes – how the pupils are dilated and another feeling tinges the atmosphere around them. Eren looks lustful and it is all raw and obvious, no shame to be attended. These are one of the rare moments in his life where Levi really does not know what to do. He has always been a survivor, a strong fighter – always known what to do in every situation he has been through. Right now, nothing comes to his mind.

The confusion distracts him until he feels his shirt being dragged up, subsequently Eren's face pressing there, just at the start of his rib cage. Levi claws the earth – even if it is dirty and humid, and he flexes his abdominals when he feels the flat of Eren's tongue run along the bridge of his abs. It feels bad but at the same time good, unlike what he has ever felt before, and it confuses him to a strange extent.

He gasps when Eren dips his tongue in his navel, slowly and explorative – and his hips buck up in response as his lower back arches off the ground in an abrupt spasm. He sucks in the air sharply, shutting his eyes promptly whereas an unusually vulnerable moan slips past his lips. Eren does react to this though, and he hears another groan from the teal-eyed stranger. Levi is surprised when darkness appears underneath his eyelids again and his stomach feels cold when Eren draws away.

Instead, Eren looms above him again, eyes wide and just as raw as before. Eren huddles closer and bends in his back; lowering himself between Levi's spread legs. Through the material of Eren's quilt, Levi can feel a prominent bulge press against him – against his own arousal straining in his pants. He opens his eyes at this, startled when Eren arches into him with a tauntingly slow pace – an experimental rock of his hips. It sends a spark through Levi's spine when he does it again, and everything feels surreal and strange – suddenly out of his control in a way he does not know if he should fear or enjoy.

Then, everything turns cold when a chatter appears in the distance. Amidst everything, footsteps of more than one person trudges through the moss and bushes, and Levi's entire body freezes. Panic arises when he recognizes the voices, one of them loud and clear – and it can only belong to one person. Hange.

He feels something akin to dread inside – and something else, an undeniable and heavy feeling that should not be there, something he rarely experiences by the disturbance of intimacy.

Disappointment.

He gets so distracted by the incoming people that he does not notice when Eren draws away, and he only hears the rustle of bushes being pushed aside when the boy is out of his view – as if he has never been there. In the whisk of the motions, his body feels somehow cold right where Eren had been hovering, although a permanent buzz prickles his cheeks and runs underneath his skin all the places Eren had touched him.

Looking around wildly, it is true that Eren is nowhere to be seen. However, left is the cougar a few feet away, and Levi notices something gleaming on the bottom of the forest floor – Eren's dagger.

''I thought I heard something over there,'' sounds another voice – and Levi thinks it belongs to Petra.

The footsteps come closer and at last, as guessed, Hange and Petra appear from the direction Levi had come from in the first place. They both look startled and taken aback, but are both by Levi's side in less than five seconds, hovering by his side, asking him several of different questions in a row.

Levi would have been surprised too if he was to come in on a scene like this, not having known what had went on.

Furthermore, he wonders what Hange and Petra thinks about finding him starry-eyed and flustered, hair mussed, dirt smudged on his clothes along with a bit of blood that does not even belong to himself – and with his bow and arrow discarded between his legs. Not to mention the cougar dead on the ground and the dagger covered in blood, too.

To find the unapproachable, abrasive and seemingly unemotional Levi like this.

* * *

Hange does not stop speaking on the way home, not even once.

However, all Levi can think of are those teal and piercingly intense eyes, along with the lingering touches and the warm, big hands belonging to the brown-haired and feral stranger, Eren.

Eren are one of those different people, he realizes.


	2. Encounter

Notice that this is a mashup of many different things - an alternature universe with different cultures.  
I have no certain knowledge of the cultures.

[For those reading now; the last bit was written five in the morning. It will be adjusted when I have the time. The text has not been checked through yet for eventual mistakes.]

Enjoy.

* * *

Things have been different since then, somehow.

Some people are easy to forget.

Some are not.

Levi has met many varied kinds of people from different clans and tribes, and he has had encounters that scrambled his thoughts upside-down and lingered in his mind for several days afterwards. The encounter with Eren back then is one of those cases. The difference this time is that it stays embedded in the back of his head somewhere, and it has no plans to stop taunting his head – especially his dreams at night.

It had only been a brief encounter, a strange meeting of a foreign culture, but it has rustled something inside Levi's head – not to mention his senses.

At first, he thinks it makes sense – the fact that he will think about it a lot, and for every pair of green eyes he meets, he thinks of a certain teal color and raw lust. What he has not expected is for the lingering swirl of disappointment to lounge in his stomach, continuously present even at times he wishes it would just disappear.

He has been intimate with other people before, although it has never meant anything big to him. It has always been mere needs and nothing else, and love and attraction is just not something Levi pays much attention to in general.

* * *

Hange, as observant as ever, notices the change in Levi's behavior. Not that Levi will blatantly put his dismay on show, but Hange and he are early childhood friends. She knows how he works, and she notices the moments around the campfire in the evenings – those small and prompt incidents where Levi will stare longingly into the fire, eyes hooded and strangely troubled.

''Has something happened?'' she asks one day as they walk in one of the smaller forests to gather supplies and material. The question is sudden to Levi, because seconds before she had been laughing at something she had remembered, cheerful and energized. Her face expression changes almost immediately, and sometimes Levi forgets how observant she can be. He thinks about the question and finds himself dumbfounded when he thinks of how long it has been since he met Eren. Months have passed, and despite wanting to, Levi has not even once gotten near the Magnus woods again for some reason.

''Nothing more than the usual,'' Levi only but grunts, plainly dismissive. He looks the other way and runs a hand through his cropped hair, rustling it lightly. Hange does not let go if it easily, but she knows when to back off. The fact that she cares is altogether enough, and Levi, albeit not very fond of close contact, gives her shoulder a 'tender' punch and she howls out a laughter and returns it with even more force.

''You know about Erwin, don't you? He wants you ranked up again,'' Hange says a little later between the talk of what materials they are in a need of supplying. Levi squats down in front of a little trench, looking for stones and things alike. ''I know that. It is as if he has nothing else on his mind, that smug idiot,'' he sighs somehow annoyed, but he does not mean the slur as anything but empty words. ''I do not have any interest in anything else than hunting and protecting the clan. Being chief and discussing society matters can be left to Erwin for all I care,'' he continues, face neutral. He hears Hange acknowledge his words somewhere behind him with a 'mh-mm'.

Hange appears next to him and squats down too, scrunching her nose up. ''There will be a big meeting between the nearby clans and tribes in just a few weeks. Since you are one of the main hunters here, you will have to participate,'' she sighs, pursing her mouth, although her eyes look excited. ''But-'' she perks up, sounding smug all of sudden, ''I think it will interest you this time, Levi.'' Levi groans and looks the other way, shrugging.

''There has been an interesting growth in one of the smaller tribes. In the past months their population has been doubled twice the amount of our clan,'' she continues, and this does catch Levi's interest – gradually. It is not that Levi's clan is exceptionally big – but they are not just of quite the ordinary number either. ''Are they a threat?'' Levi gives her a considering look, suddenly tensing up. ''I do not think that is the case, though. The change was implemented just after their old chief died and the son took over in his stead. They are a spiritually interested crowd too,'' Hange raises herself and dusts some dirt off her knees.

''What was the old chief's name?''

''Grisha.''

''The new chief?''

''We do not know that yet.''

Levi raises himself too and tongues the inside of his cheek in a considering gesture. ''Tribes are usually known for having their own languages. How do we get in contact with them?''

''It has been told that they are learning our languages as well as we will be learning theirs, but only gradually. We have tried it before, and we have met their tribe before too when they were not as big. If they become an impactful crowd, we might have to get more involved with them than what is currently expected. Especially if they impose a threat and begin to conquer others´ regions.''

''Can cooperation be expected too?''

''If we are on the same terms, then gladly,'' Hange says, and she nods and looks eccentric by the mention of the idea.

They gather the stuff they have found and walk, murmuring about the usual – hunting and places for them to be.

On the way, Hange suddenly jabs in with a: ''you are quite the wanted man around the regions. People speak about you in other clans too. I find it humorous that you have never even once settled down or tried to find a wife, considering you are a young hunter. The best around while we are at it, and you have those drowsy _bedroom_ eyes that they women love, the muscular built and oh-'' Hange puts emphasis on her words, fluttering her eyelashes as she tries not to laugh as she speaks. Levi jabs his elbow into her side and she whimpers but does not stop talking, at last sounding genuinely curious.

''I could say the same about you, shitty brunette,'' Levi groans, scrunching his nose up as he grimaces, something he usually does not do. Hange brings out many of Levi's sides, after all. ''You know all the men are running around you like lost puppies, yet you head to the Kanjis and snogs the chief's daughter, Petra, when you think nobody sees it,'' he drawls, smiling smugly by the way Hange perks up and whines pathetically, huffing a ''you know how it is!''

Levi chuckles at this and Hange joins in a little later.

Love and attraction is not always just easy, he now knows.

* * *

He still has Eren's dagger.

Back then, when he came home, he had put it in one of the cabins – his own, and had put it somewhere on the fur on his bed and later forgotten about it. Today, he spots it lying in the end of the bed, somehow well hidden between the duvet and tree frames.

Because of all the filth on it, Levi had cleaned it just when he had come home, and later sat on his bed and stared at it intently – traced the patterns embarked in the handle.

Now he sits on the bed again, staring at it while a strange sensation buzzes under his skin. He rarely feels remorse in a situation like this where Eren had forgotten to bring it with him, but he feels like he has to return it or something. The dagger is beautiful and unique – and he has heard that primitive tribes tend to give these daggers to the new hunters as a sign of their growing maturity. It is special to the owner, and one dagger is never the same.

* * *

For the first time in months, he heads out to the Magnus woods again. He finds it pathetic that the anticipation to meet Eren again cradles in his stomach – but it is undeniable and continuously present, nothing he can shy away with just willpower.

He wears his usual attire – his choice of weapon being the sword he was granted by Erwin due his hunting reputation some years ago. He has a black coat draped on his shoulders with a pelt twisted in the collar and fur lined along his shoulders as another layer. Underneath he wears an olive green woolen shirt along with a leather scrap strewn across his chest as protection, and a belt is lined above both the coat and shirt with attachments bound to his waist – Eren's dagger attached at the back. His pants are grey and of light material and loose in the beginning, but there are woolen wraps starting from the shins to his ankles, tightly bound with leather strings.

The weather is luckily not as warm as it usually is, so he trots ahead without much trouble regarding his choice of clothing.

He is not sure if he can find the place he met Eren at, and the wood is big and sometimes alluring in foreboding manners. The creatures vary here, just as it had before – you will not know whether you will encounter a rabbit or cougar just around the next corner.

However, he finds the place, and finds himself strangely secure that he is right about the location when he recognizes the huge plants and wood area. What assures it is when he notices the huge boar slain on the ground, starched blood mudded around it and sunken into the moss. Next to it, a bow and an arrow pouch lies, and not just anyone's, but the set Levi had left the day he met Eren. He wonders about the presence of the boar, and carefully closes in on it. It has not been lying there for more than a few days or so, he figures.

Around the area, there are other dark marks and puddles of starched black fluid, and it seems that other animals have been brought here as well – though removed later on. It looks like a strange way of gifting, like when his own clan sacrifice animals to their beliefs.

His eyes catches something glistening on the forest floor – lying between the pouch and the bow, gently draped onto a scrap of bark. He swallows heavily and gets down on his knees, reaching out for the item. Something clogs in his throat when he holds it up and in front of him.

A piece of jewelry. A necklace.

It is simple, but at the same time not. The strap is thick and made out of leather with some sort of teal silk draped atop - and in the middle, an appendage hangs. The appendage is a round coin looking shape of a kind, but the surface is polished and blank so the light reflects in it. Levi has never seen or felt material like this - only but rarely. Marble. What makes him even more curious is the pattern inscribed in the little appendage, which is a figure shown – a wolf's head outlined in the cream-colored marble along with waves surrounding it. It has red claw marks on each cheek and piercingly teal eyes.

Levi's mouth feels dry all of sudden. His heart beats a little faster and warmth blossoms inside his stomach, somehow. He is not sure why – he is not even sure what this means. His moral tells him to let the necklace lie where it was before, but his hand clutches it in his palm and he feels childish, because his gut feeling tells him to keep it.

In the end, he draws Eren's dagger out and lays it instead between the bow and pouch, gently putting it there after he has inspected it for the last time. He wraps the necklace around his right wrist instead, though, and stands for a minute or two, just admiring the beautiful jewelry dangling from his hand.

His chest feels lighter, somehow. Something akin to relief drapes on his shoulders and he lets out a shaky breath.

* * *

He spends many nights sitting with his back against the wall of his cabin, mindlessly looking at the necklace he has found. It makes his mind at ease for some reason. When he is out in public, he hides it underneath his sleeve – but likes the way it dangles and brushes against his skin – the cold and smooth marble coin.

The days close in and weeks pass. Erwin stands in front of the clan one evening, his voice important and knowing. He carries his shoulders like a leader should, and despite his unpredictable behavior, he knows what is necessary and is the right man to carry the responsibility.

He announces that the ranked members, including himself and some of the hunters – hereby Levi, will be gone for some days as they are to proceed attending the chief meeting a day's travelling away from here. Left will the members be, along with all the other hunters.

The ones going are Erwin, Levi, Hange, Olou, Erd, Gunther and Moblit.

* * *

Travelling takes a lot of time, takes a lot of endurance especially by horseback. It has been a long time since Levi has been here in the warmer regions, and he takes in the landscape with wonder as they arrive close to the location the meeting is supposed to be held at.

This is the borderline to the primal tribes´ region, and the landscapes are as always vigorous this time of the year. The sun is high on the sky and the rays ache in their necks as they jump down from the horses. The Kanji clan greets them since they have arrived some time before them, and Levi notices how Hange glances at the chief´s daughter with sauntering eyes, and he sighs heavily. Hange punches his shoulder and tells him to keep quiet, Levi only but smiling somehow smugly when he says not a word leaves his lips.

They have to walk a few kilometers to reach the village. Everyone is tired due the long travelling, but Levi walks with his back straight and his chest heaved – it being a matter of course for being granted the title as the strongest hunter throughout the lands. On the way, they meet some of the villagers and members of the grown tribe that are organizing the meeting. It is another foreign experience in itself, just like back then when Levi had met a primitive tribe for the very first time. They wear lots of jewelry of wood and other material – feathers, wraps, quilts, dresses and some only a cloth around their hips. However, there is not a general overall look for the individuals, because it seems that they come from all over the place – although they belong in the same tribe. Some are pale, some tanned and other dark skinned. Big, small, skew and round eyes and blond or dark hair.

Most of them give Erwin and his crew long stares, some of them leaning closer as if they have no knowledge of private space. Levi must think it is mostly because of their different clothes – whereas they wear woolen material, gauntlets, shoulder armor and huge cloaks, some along with helmets. Levi feels grumpy and as if he is about to melt and the warmth is unbearable – this is anything but like in his own village.

At last, they reach the mentioned core village of the growing tribe, and it is huge when the forest begins to even out and more fields are in view. Instead of cabins and stone houses, they have tents of different sizes and clay houses with straws for roof. To be honest, Levi is pleasantly surprised, somehow. He had expected them to live in caves or grass builds – however far his imagination can reach. This is different.

He can spot other familiar clans further ahead mingled with some of the villagers – the other chiefs and ranked members being introduced to the place as they find their tents to sleep in for the night.

One villager greets them when they tread closer, and they are all surprised when he speaks their language fluently. He has blonde hair and blue eyes and introduces himself as Armin. He is very polite and thanks them for coming, and subsequently bids them in for dinner and things alike – though primarily showing them where they are to spend the night. It is strange. If he had not been wearing tribe clothing, Levi would have thought he would have come from another clan – perhaps even his own.

Armin even darts his hand out to greet each with a delicate handshake. Levi draws his hand out and his sleeve slips down in the process. When it is his turn, Armin shakes his hand – his palm soft and the pressure fond – but stops amidst it and stares at him with wide eyes, blinking them almost in disbelief. Levi notices that his gaze had lingered on the necklace wrapped around his wrist just for a second or two. Armin tilts his head and smiles – this time brighter, letting go of Levi's hand.

The thing they need to adjust themselves to is the growling surrounding them. Not growling in definition, but animalistic noses coming from the villagers – and even Armin perches back and clicks his tongue when some of his fellow beings regard him. Even Erwin looks speechless sometimes when he peeks around.

Hange, though, mingles with the villagers as if she has known them for ages. She just keeps talking in her native language but seems to get along with them, and she disappears out of Levi's view in a matter of a mere seconds, probably out socializing.

Armin escorts Levi to his own private tent, apparently. Levi questions this, seeing as some of the others have been huddled together in even smaller tents. Armin seems somewhat put off by this question, lips wobbling at the corners as if he is flustered. Levi shrugs on his shoulders. ''Thank you,'' is all he says in order not to cause any trouble. It does not matter anyway, he thinks. As long as he can get somewhere to sleep, he should be good.

* * *

Dusk falls.

''The stars seem even more beautiful here than they do at home,'' Levi says as he walks with Erwin and Hange. They both agree. Everything feels more raw and real – closer to the heart and to the nature.

A banquet is to be held in honor of all the important guests that have arrived. This is the opening banquet where the different clans attending are introduced, as well as the tribe's chief has to officially welcome them.

Many lights surround them – warm flames in bowls and other decorations. The guests sit in a circle around the huge bonfire in the middle, while the villagers and other members sit variedly around them, some dancing and others walking around. Many of the habitants wander back and forth constantly, placing varied delicacies in front of the chiefs and ranked people. A heavy sound of bongo drums fills the air along with other foreign instruments, it all joins and creates a catchy tune.

Levi sits in the inner circle by Erwin's request, getting a good view of the dancers skillfully roaming around. Their movements are unlike what Levi has ever seen – fluent and beautiful, following the tune playing in the background. It looks even more impactful since they line together in a dance around the bonfire in the middle – so all the viewers can see are their silhouettes and the flames behind them.

The food is extraordinary, generally consists of meat and undefined fruits Levi might never have seen. He sinks his teeth into a fruit and savors the bitter taste that quivers on his tongue – unlike what he has tasted before.

Levi talks with some of the other hunters sitting next to him. He finds peace in it, especially because some of them are people he has hunted with before. They share memories and talk about what is going on in their clans currently. Mina, who he chats with, slows down in the middle of speaking though, and her eyes widen as she regards the bonfire. Levi perks up at this and looks at the same place Mina and the others are looking.

He had been so engulfed in the talk that he had not noticed the changes around him, and he now notices how the music has been reduced to half its volume, the drums sounding like the hiss of a snake. The guests stop talking entirely, and everyone listens intensely to the change in the music, along with the dancers slowing down in the circle.

The dancers hunch in their backs and bow down, some taking stances like animals as they grovel around. They dash around one another and pretend to sniff around, and one lounges out at the other and makes a growl deeply in her chest. The gesture seems to trigger something as an animalistic thrum spreads between them, and is joined by panting and hissing noises from the villagers behind. It sounds strange at first, but melts together and creates another generic tune that makes Levi's heart beat faster.

Levi nearly jumps in his seat when the drums suddenly beat louder – more aggressively. He does not know if it is just him or if the ground is vibrating, but everything turns intense and real. The panting and groaning does not stop, furthermore, it speeds up and gets wilder and wilder. If one did not know the noises were human, they would have thought packs of wolves were meddling. The dancers get more aggressive and twist their bodies on the floor, pretending to be feral.

What catches the viewers´ interest is the fire behind the dancers. The flames grow bigger, licking up at the night sky ferociously. Hange makes a muffled noise when the flames´ color changes – a wave of green surges through it and then a predatory red. The dancers turn their bodies toward the fire now and bow down in respect and the speed of the drumming increases. Everyone holds his or her breath when a figure appears inside the fire, and a man outlines along with what seems to be a feather headdress, judging by the shadow. Then the dancers lift themselves and lean their heads back as they let out a howl that unites as one, and the fire crackles and the guests inch a bit back when it explodes. An even louder and raw howl fills the air when the dancers finish, coming from the fire. It lasts for what seems like minutes and makes a shiver surge down Levi's spine. He holds his breath when the fire splits in two, fuming down to being only glowing petals in a ring that surrounds the man standing in the middle.

Everything turns quiet - the only noise being the crackling of the embers left behind. Then, some of the embers burst into smaller flames, enough to light up the man standing there.

The man lifts his arms and holds them in a broad welcoming gesture, standing with his chest heaved, legs spread and his head held high. ''Welcome,'' he says – and his voice sounds alluring and boyish, but at the same time deep and raw.

A swirling feeling ensues in Levi's chest by the voice filling his ears. Everything seems dimmed expect for the man standing there, majestic and real – wearing a huge feather headdress that consists of white feathers with green, red and black colors in the peak. When Levi sees the face of the man, it is as if his heart stops beating. Almond shaped eyes, painted red claw marks on each cheek, tanned skin and mussed brown - now longer hair. He is not wearing the same attire as when he first met him, but something close to it – and although the colors have been changed a bit, it is nearly the same. Instead of wearing the cloak, he wears the headdress whereas the feather rows nearly touch the floor as long they are. His body seems even more muscular and his shoulders broader. Levi cannot see if his eyes are teal due the light, but he can already imagine it.

As imaginative he can be, this is nowhere close to how he had expected to meet Eren again – if they were ever to meet again. However, this is real, and Levi has a hand drawn up to his chest, his palm tightening around his woolen shirt as he squeezes the fabric as if his life depends on it.

All eyes are on Eren as he stands with a smile on his lips, baring his teeth. Despite that, he looks proper and serious. His language is imperfect and his accent is thick, but it is understandable and draws everyone's attention to him. He welcomes the guests that have come from a long distance, telling them that his tribe is honored to meet them, as well as to be the ones to organize the meeting itself.

Subsequently, he introduces some of the other members from the clan, which includes the blonde person from before as well. Levi flinches a bit when a black-haired woman attends, her name being Mikasa. She stands close to Eren and bows deeply when they meet, and when Eren leans down they brush the tips of their noses together just shortly. Levi is perplexed when he does the same to Armin when is introduced. Physical contact must come easy to them, he figures.

He does not know if Eren will actually recognize him, and a prickling uncertainty looms in the pit of his stomach. He feels sick for feeling so drawn to Eren when it might not even be returned, and since Eren is this chief of an alarmingly growing tribe, it would not be a wonder that he must be popular to the women around. Therefore, Levi draws himself a bit back, hunching in his back, which he usually keeps proper, trying to lessen his presence. It feels wrong and peculiar, but he does not want to risk anything else.

The guests begin to chatter about the entrance and the chief himself – clearly impressed altogether, and Hange looks like she has seen a piece of the gods work as she claps her hands and jumps in her seat. Nevertheless, when Eren talks again, everyone quiets down again automatically, intently listening. Erwin looks impressed.

Eren was before standing from an angle where Levi could only see him from askew, but now he turns around and takes a few steps as he walks. His eyes scan the crowd as he talks about the grand meeting between the chiefs tomorrow, and in the middle of a sentence, it seems that his body goes rigid and his foot heaves a bit above the ground before he takes another step. Levi cannot hear anything but his temples beating when Eren locks his eyes on him, although he has tried to inch a bit behind Erwin's broad shoulders. The ground feels as if vibrating underneath him, but nothing happens, and the people around him look perplexed by the interruption of Eren's talking. Levi feels like he cannot breathe. Eren bows his head a bit and his eyes turn hooded – those almond eyes squint by little and a prowling smirk stretches across his lips just for a brief second.

Then Eren turns on his head and continues his speech like nothing happened. Levi swallows heavily, his heart is pounding in his chest and when he looks to the side, Erwin is giving him a questioning glance. His lips are drawn in a tight line, and Hange as well gives him a worried look. ''S' nothing,'' he breathes out, shaking on his head as he looks down at his lap and closes his eyes.

The rest of the banquet seems to last forever. Whenever Levi catches a glimpse of Eren, his heart skips a beat and his gut feels warm. It feels incredibly wrong and he thinks he must be filthy, but he cannot help but to be drawn to the rush as well. He has never felt like this before. Nobody should be able to do this to him. He relieves the tension by eating some more of the good fruit, as well as to speak with Hange and the rest of his crew, despite never having been much of a talker.

* * *

Alternately, the chiefs will stand up and introduce themselves. Eren sits in the middle with the rest of the ranked crew in his tribe, in turns talking to the different people – welcoming those who come with host gifts or come to greet him. Levi is in the middle of munching another piece of fruit when Erwin raises himself, as tall he is - and with his knowing looks and indomitable headstrongness thanks Eren for the hospitality.

Erwin turns around and introduces the different members he has brought – ''and at last but not least, Levi Ackermann, the strongest hunter throughout the landscapes.'' Levi nearly gets a grape in the wrong windpipe when mentioned, but he stands up anyway and he feels how Eren outright stares at him. Levi does not care about the other people impressed by the title, but can only pay to attention to the expression on Eren's face. He is neither smiling nor frowning – only but looks intense and concentrated. Raw.

Even when Levi sits down again and another chief stands up to speak, Eren is still looking at him from behind his arm. He sits with one knee up, resting the side of his arm and elbow there – like a predator following its target from a safe and hidden distance, ensuring to know every movement Levi makes.

When the banquet is over, Hange nearly rips Levi's arm off when she drags him away from the circle. She leads him a little further ahead and gives him a leering smirk, contributing with lots of questioning _'huh'_ and '_hah_'s. ''What was that?'' she says and makes a wild gesture with her hands, pointing at her eyes wildly. ''Did you see that? Eren? **The **_**chief**_? Did you see it- he outright _glared_ at you, man – he looked like he wanted to eat you alive- like skin and bones and-'' Levi groans loudly and run his hands through his hair, mimicking to be ripping some strands off. ''Do you think I have _not_ noticed?'' he wheezes, and never has he showed so much exhaustion during a sentence.

''This is _wild_,'' she says, putting emphasis on the last word. Olou joins in and stands next to her, although oblivious to what they are discussing. Fleetingly, they start talking about the whole culture and the banquet in general – Olou sounding so keen about the chief's entrance that he bites his tongue by accident. Levi is surrounded by idiots, he concludes.

Amidst talking, Hange tenses up and her words turn into muffled mumbling and an awkward squawk as she looks at Levi – or at something above him. Levi furrows his brows and looks at the others, who look just as surprised towards his direction.

Then he hears it. A familiar, feral growl behind him – or close to him. He feels a wall against his back. It is even more prominent since he is not wearing his cloak right now, and his insides heat up. A sensation of being watched lingers underneath his skin. ''_**Levi**_,'' he hears in his ear, mingled with a husky rumble, a warm breath ghosting along the shell of his ear. He tenses up when he feels a face press against the juncture of his neck, like being loomed all over, and he hears Eren's breath do a stutter as he inhales sharply.

Eren snakes his arm around Levi's waist and presses him closer, hovering over him as he buries his face in the crook of his neck, brushing his lips against the skin there. Levi automatically cranes his neck to give Eren more space, but he finds it hard to breathe and his heart is hammering against his rib cage. His cheeks are prickling, and he realizes he is blushing, since now they have onlookers – Hange and Olou standing with mouths ajar and eyes that look as if ready to pop out of their sockets.

Levi feels limbless, and his gut is straining and everything is whirling inside his mind. Of all times, it should be right now. In addition, something Eren seemingly will never grow out of, is his lack of shame regarding close proximity, and Levi shivers when he opens his mouth and scrapes a canine teeth there, his warm breath fanning over the skin. ''Tonight,'' Eren growls against his jawline – not loud enough for the others to hear. Then he is gone, and the warmth leaves Levi's back in a whisk.

They just stand for a few couple of minutes. Just standing. Levi tries to let the embarrassment vanish, but his ears are even red by now, his lower lip is trembling and his eyes feel unusually wet. What he awaits finally comes. Hange and Olou break into laughter and they gasp for air. They change from serious to cheeky in mere seconds, not knowing if they should be impressed or humored. What is the most unusual is the way Levi is reacting, let alone the fact that Levi, of all people, seems to have a sexual relationship - with a male and the chief of a successful tribe, that is.

''Oh-'' Hange clutches her hands around her stomach and wobbles on her feet. ''When did-'' she says, and now she looks puzzled. ''Mate, you got the chief,'' Olou whispers when he is done laughing, looking as if he has seen something out of this world. ''When did this happen?'' Hange asks, and Olou joins in too.

''Shut it,'' Levi scowls, heat embedded to his cheeks.

* * *

Levi goes to bed early.

Tonight, Eren had said. Would it mean they would meet up tonight?

To do—

Levi swallows heavily and turns onto his side. The bed is an arrangement of fur and duvets, and it is too warm outside to use the duvet. He wears a loose shirt and loose pants, but nothing else. It is still early in the evening, so he lulls himself to the noise of music playing in the distance, along with villagers passing by every now and then and faint chattering.

He is still young, he realizes. Not having turned twenty yet, he is still very young. However, he feels like he should be older. On the other hand – in other words, feels like he needs to be. Right now, he feels like a child – nervous to the core – anticipation cradling inside his stomach. He does not like not being in control of his feelings. He does not like putting them on a show so blatantly. He is supposed to be strong – to protect people.

He wants go hunting. The only way he knows to relieve any torment storming within. He cannot do it here, though. This is not why he is here. Eren is not why he is here, either. He has to remember that, he tells himself.

He tries to stand by that thought. He cannot.

He rolls onto his back and stares up at the roof of the tent, and there is an open hole so that he can see a bit of the night sky.

He falls asleep, feeling as if he rests under the beautiful stars, wanting a certain warmth. Missing those teal and piercingly intense eyes, along with the lingering touches and the warm, big hands belonging to the brown-haired and feral stranger, Eren.

* * *

Levi wakes up in the middle of the night. He wakes up seeing the gap of the roof opening where the night sky and its stars peek through. He wakes up feeling unusually warm everywhere. He wakes up to the sound of a soft growling above him and a warm body pressed against him between his legs.

''_Eren_,'' he breathes out, eyes blinking repeatedly as his body and mind wakes up slowly. The growling turns louder – a deep rumble that he can feel vibrate in his body tenderly. His in- and exhaling becomes heavier when he feels two hands travel underneath his shirt, brushing the skin there with rough palms of hands that have been in work for ages. A shadow looms above him, and all he can see is the teal nuance in those eyes that have been haunting his dreams for months.

Eren leans down and brushes his nose against Levi's, and his breath is warm and nice. He then brushes his lips against his jawline until he reaches his throat, and he mouths the contour of Levi's Adams apple, swiping his tongue there as well. Levi's breath does a stutter and he does not yet know whether the situation is real or not, so he acts on his senses and lets out a needy moan – light and unlike him.

This time, however, Eren does not travel further down. Levi has had his eyes closed but opens them again when he feels warmth radiate against his own lips like a light tickle. It sends a striking sensation coursing down to his knees, and he bucks up in his hips to indicate the contact he wants. Eren's breathing is unusually heavy, sometimes coming out as groans. Levi cannot help himself but to reach out when their lips press together. He notices that Eren is not wearing his feather headdress anymore, but only his quilt and the leather scrap strewn across his chest.

Eren's skin is warm and pleasant when Levi reaches out and touches. He means for it to be gentle, but it feels desperate as he grabs at his hips instead, running his hands along the smooth and rippled back. He can feel roughness of the body paint scribbled across the skin and traces some of the patterns that run along his spine. Eren trembles against him and makes a sharp inhale. He runs his tongue along his lower lip in an indication. The gesture surprises Levi and he gasps, and Eren slides his tongue in and straddles the back of his teeth. An electric feeling blossom somewhere in Levi's stomach when their tongues brush past one another, and when they slide and do it again, he lets out a pleasant moan and dig his fingers into Eren's back, pressing him closer.

Levi rarely feels desperate. He rarely needs the presence of another human like this – in the way he needs Eren right now. ''Eren,'' he whispers – then again in what reminds of a whine, and Eren presses closer to him and it feels like he is devouring him, the kiss being all messy but real and desperate.

They break apart panting – it filling the room as the only other noise is the bugs buzzing outside and an owl hooting in the distance. Levi's breathing is so frantic it turns into moaning, and he laments amidst it and closes his eyes, swallowing heavily – trying to calm down. Something seems to catch Eren's interest when Levi feels his hand being held up, and he realizes that Eren is perceiving the necklace still wrapped around there. It is not very visible in the dark, but the rays of the moonlight shimmering through reflects in the polished surface, lightning it up. Eren presses his mouth against it and then turns his attention toward Levi again, looking surprised and even more intense than before. ''Levi,'' he whispers – and there is something in the way he says it that Levi cannot put a finger on. Eren does not say anything when he lifts up in Levi's shirt, though. This situation reminds him of the very first time they met.

Eren presses his face against the start of his rib cage with his eyes closed, probing there with his tongue, inhaling. Levi feels his lower lip wobble, trying to muffle the noises he makes. His hips twists a bit when Eren does that thing again where he dips his tongue in his navel, sensually and slowly – following the shape and budge inwards with the tip of his tongue. He follows the barely prominent trail of hair leading to the edge of Levi's pants, and Levi seems to forget how to breathe. He bucks his hips up in a desperate motion, wanting Eren to continue.

Eren presses his hands against his hips in order to make him lie still, showing that he is in control. It is done with a certain tenderness all the while, and it makes Levi want to challenge him, somehow. However, he does lie still when Eren mouths the outline of his erection through the pants, and he nearly lets out an embarrassed whine when the brunette presses his face there, taking a deep inhale. He looks down and sees two wild eyes look up at him, eyeing him intently.

What Levi does not expect is for Eren to go to ill manners, and he thinks the unbelievable when he hears a strained noise and sees his pants being ripped apart, Eren uncaring of its whereabouts as he discards the now pieces of fabric round and about. ''Eren,'' Levi hisses at him and gives him a foul stare through the dark, and he can just sense the way Eren gives a prowling smirk in return before diving down.

Eren does it again – presses his face against Levi's arousal – this time without any fabric to separate them. Levi holds back a groan and latches his hands onto his own face, feeling his face grow hot. He receives a ''No,'' from Eren for this, and is surprised when Eren peels his hands off, shaking on his head with a determined expression on his face. ''Want to see,'' is all he says, slowly inching backwards again as he lowers himself, eyes never leaving Levi's face.

Eren's hands are warm on his arousal, big hands prominent and rough. Levi's legs are quivering underneath him, and he does his best not to arch in his back, but fails when Eren slides his tongue against the slit of the head, just briefly. He expects Eren to continue and go on. Eren runs just the tip of his tongue along the shaft, but nothing more than that. He ceases further down and presses a tender kiss to Levi's inner thigh, opening his mouth as he tastes on the soft skin and swipes his tongue there too, letting out something reminding of a satisfied purr. Levi leans his head back against the fur duvet and bites his lower lip, knees trembling from where Eren is nestled between them. Eren is teasing him, he realizes.

''Please,'' he whispers, breathing through his nose. ''Eren,'' he continues, and he is not sure what he is to say and instead whimpers in a vulnerable way he will never admit has found place, his fingers clawing the duvet underneath him. ''Please,'' he says again and repeats the noise, arching a bit in his back.

Eren chuckles – a noisy inhale followed by a gentle sound. He leans forward and takes the head between his lips, sucking lightly. Levi licks his lips and sighs in relief, ''- Yes,'' he says, breathing out. It feels even better when Eren takes more in and slides his tongue underneath the head and along an apparent vein, bobbing his head gingerly. Levi's hands are restless where they lie, and one hand drafts down to tangle in Eren's hair. It is found encouraging as Eren increases his pace, and Levi tries not to let the embarrassment get to him from the slick noises and slippery squelches that fills the silence in the night.

At some point, Eren stops just when a tight feeling ensues in Levi's stomach. Levi makes a questioning noise, feeling grumpy by the interruption. He is not prepared when his head is whirring and sight sent twisting, and he realizes he has been manhandled onto his stomach when he feels his face press against the duvet. He lets out a breathy gasp when his knees are drawn up and he feels two hands grope his thighs from behind, spreading them. He has his hands drawn up in front of him and his face pressed against the duvet and his ass propped up in display.

For a moment, he is not sure what is going on – until he feels a warm breath against the cleft of his buttocks, along with two hands spreading them and something brush his hole. The sudden gesture makes him arch forward and shy away from Eren's touch, which only makes Eren chuckle gently – followed by a growl as he drags him closer.

Levi raises his head to look at what is going on, and sees just as Eren's head disappears behind him. Eren lets out a blow of air against it and it flutters due the foreign sensation.''Wha-'' Levi says, flabbergasted, trying to inch away, but Eren keeps him in place. Levi's whole body jolts when he feels something wet and warm prod against the hole, resulting a gasp from him. Warmth pools in his stomach when Eren swirls his tongue and does it again, probing with more force than before. All the while, his hands massage and press gently along his thighs, continuously keeping them spread to give him enough access.

Levi lets out a stuttering moan when Eren tongues the inside as well, and the experience is altogether drawing him closer and closer to another kind of desperation he cannot define. He even presses a bit back, wanting Eren to use more force. Eren still uses his tongue, but prods his finger in as well. The intrusion is at first strange and somehow unpleasant, but Levi needs more of something – more of Eren, so for every time Eren pushes it in, Levi presses back again to meets the motion.

Gradually, Eren adds more fingers and it begins to ache the slightest. For some reason, though, Levi welcomes it and finds peace in it – it gives him a rush he finds himself drawn to. He is panting against the duvet, cheek mashed against it as he lets out a ragged moan each time Eren pushes his fingers inside again and his body follows the motion.

''Levi,'' he hears Eren say amidst it, and Eren has leaned in and above him to kiss his shoulder blade softly, letting his lips linger there. Nothing is said between them when Eren lines up and grabs Levi's hips, aching his pelvis against him in a taunting pace, his hips doing a stutter – experimentally. Levi hears a rustle when Eren takes off his quilt, but he wishes he could be turning the other way so that he can see Eren properly. It comes as a natural thought that it is to happen from behind when Eren grabs his hips again, learning forward to trail kisses between his shoulder blades. Eren's skin is soft and warm against his, and he enjoys the feeling of them being in contact and close.

It does not go as he thinks it would, because Eren nudges his face against Levi's left shoulder blade, whereas he subsequently pushes him onto his side and then onto his back, nestling in between his legs again. Eren looms above him on all four – and Levi finds him beautiful, even if he cannot see him properly through the night. He reaches out and traces his fingers along the gap between Eren's abdominals, and he notices how Eren's stance falters shortly as he lets out a soft tune. He takes hold of Levi's hand, pressing his lips to the necklace once more – as he had before – and lets out another purr, fond and loving. Something warn and unexplainable spreads inside Levi's chest – unlike any other feeling he has ever felt before. He feels light like a feather.

He spreads his legs and grants Eren further access. Eren leans in and down, pressing his face against the crook of his neck as he licks the sweat there, inhales the smell of musk. Levi does the same this time, mimicking it. It is warm and nice there, and he feels safe.

He has never known why he feels so attracted to Eren as much as he is. He only knows that he cannot stop touching – cannot stop wanting every inch of Eren. He wants to know who Eren is – everything there is to know. He wants to hunt with him, to dash in the forests in one others trail. He wants to share more nights like this – with Eren pressed close to him. Eren's warm palms on his skin. With teal eyes observing something he only will show for them, and only them.

Eren presses into him, slowly and gingerly. He turns his head and clicks his tongue, releasing a stuttering sigh against the shell of Levi's ear. ''Love,'' he says as the only thing, and Levi gasps when the intrusion begins to sting, and he closes his eyes but nods once and then some more. The stinging begins to lessen when Eren does it again, his hands wrapping around Levi's waist as he presses him closer, like they can melt into one. ''Love Levi,'' he whispers, accent thick but words clear.

Levi smiles against the crook of Eren's neck and snakes his arms around his broad figure, and this time he follows the motion of Eren's hips and lets him rock into him with more pressure than before. ''Love Eren,'' he whispers back, nipping at the tanned skin. Eren's response is immediate when he presses all the way in, and only stops when he can feel skin against skin. To Levi, it does not feel pleasurable yet, but the intimacy itself makes it the greatest thing he has ever experienced.

Therefore, he digs his fingers into Eren's back when Eren draws out gingerly, and inches back to indicate he wants him inside again. Eren lets out a deep noise that vibrates in his throat, and he pushes in with more force, sending Levi hunching up as he releases a sharp gasp. The friction starts to feel better when Eren angles himself in another way and picks up the pace, ramming into him in a deft pace that leaves Levi breathlessly panting against his throat, doing his best to meet every snap of his hips with what energy he has left.

Levi only lets out a long sigh when Eren sinks his teeth into his skin, groaning when it is matched by another thrust of his hips with a force that nearly pushes him further up the duvet. Eren keeps him in place, and soon that snug feeling straddles his stomach again while his gut feels as if soaked in heat. He moans Eren's name, but at last settles to just moan and pant, already too distracted by every time another jolt makes him hunch up and hold Eren tighter.

Eren bites him again when he draws near, licking the wound after shuddering. He rides it out till Levi climaxes as well, and they continue to lie like that for a while.

They stare into each others´ eyes, falling alseep in warm embraces.

* * *

Levi wakes up later, though.

He thinks about all the people that are easy to forget.

It all varies.

To him, Eren is someone he do not think he can ever forget.

A person he, from the moment he saw those teal eyes, choose not to forget.


	3. Home

Levi thinks the occurrence was a dream when he wakes up the next morning. His eyelids feel heavy, but his heart is beating prominently. There is only the warmth of the humid air, and otherwise he has been swept in one of the duvets he could not sleep with during the night. He looks around somewhat lazily, and feels more tired than the usual.

However, when he removes the duvet, he notices, to his surprise, that he is stark naked. Beside the bed, scraps of fabric lie around and about, which once resembled his pants. The first thing Levi thinks of is what he is going to do now that he do not have any pants. Then his eyes notice something else lying on the other side. Clothes. A quilt, along with one of those thin leather scraps to strew across ones chest.

Tribal clothing.

When Levi reaches out for it, he feels something cold clank against the lower part of his throat, he immediately puts a hand there, only to be surprised to notice it being a necklace. Moreover, he is right, because the necklace that before was tangled around his wrist – is now settled around his neck ever so prettily. Eren must have done this. He must have laid out the clothing as well, all done for Levi.

Levi should still be somewhat annoyed with the fact that Eren has ruined his pants and thrown his shirt somewhere, but he cannot help but to smile – widely, farther than he has ever done before. He keeps his hand around his throat – to rest on the necklace and the marble coin, and feels a surge of warmth and great normalcy dedicated to him.

The only problem is that when he finally grows the courage to go out, he feels incredibly bared. He is not wearing anything but the quilt and the leather strap on his chest and the necklace. His pale skin stands out on these parts – along with the frisky bite marks and hickeys Eren had given him during the night.

He feels filthy, though, and needs to wash himself, he concludes. The people around him look a little oddly at him, probably because they do not recognize him as a part of their tribe. They remember him as the strong soldier from the Legion clan.

In the end, he seeks Hange's help, only to be whisked out when he barges in on Hange spooning Petra, and Petra hides herself underneath a fur duvet – Hange being the one to nearly chase Levi out.

Erwin, along with Eren, are probably attending the clan meeting currently. Levi does not know where his other comrades are, so now he stands in the middle of the lively village, looking confused and grumpy. There is an ache in his lower region he cannot excuse, and altogether in the puzzlement, he looks uncomfortable and internally bedazzled with the foreign culture as well.

''Levi?'' a soft voice sounds behind him.

Levi turns around and is met by pure blue eyes and rich blonde hair.

He remembers the boy's name. The boy who welcomed him in the beginning of the event, as well as the boy Eren had introduced as a dear family member of his.

''Armin?'' he tries, squinting his eyes.

The boy nods, ''I'm surprised you remember my name,'' he says. He steps closer and smiles kindly. There is something about him, which tells Levi that he is a knowing creature. Empathy, tactics. It is the same as looking at Hange – the way she moves and leads herself, though in different manners. However, they give off the same knowing vibe in a strange sort of professionalism.

''S' nothing,'' Levi brushes it off, shrugging. He tongues the inside of his cheek and looks the other way – for once feeling outstanding for a whole another reason, given his current appearance.

''You looked a little lost. Is there anything I can help you with?'' Armin asks him, and Levi looks back, noticing the way Armin's eyes trace along the bite marks on his shoulders and other suspicious patches, albeit smiling all the while.

Levi bites his pride in him and nods slowly. ''I need to wash. I feel filthy,'' he says, and Armin steps closer and past him, beckoning him to follow along. ''We have small waterhole nearby that you can use,'' he says, and Levi thinks of a waterhole where animals gather – a place they poop, drink from and wash in simultaneously. He hopes for the better.

* * *

They walk for a long time and into the forest again, this time in the opposite direction of where Levi and his clan came from. Levi is not used to walking barefooted, not used to the feeling of branches scraping his skin when he pushes through the forest. Armin is faster, deft and uncaring of the growth around him – walking determinedly.

Levi is just about to ask where they in reality are heading when an opening evens out, and an, admittedly, small waterhole fills his view. However, that is not what sweeps his breath away. He stands still in the opening and stares wide-eyed at the view in front of him.

It is all pure – so very pure. The water is as if transparent, and the bottom can be seen – every stone and corn of sand and mud. It does not even have a color, but is just transparent. It looks welcoming, but also somewhat vulnerable. As if a single rustle of a newcomer or intrusion can break the beautiful barrier of purity.

Around it growth sprouts in varied ways, green and vigorous. Trees budge in and over the water, but not a single leaf rests on the polished surface. Levi steps closer to the edge of it, looking down at his own mirror image staring back at him. Armin stands from afar, watching the newcomer take in the sight.

''What do you think?'' Armin says, tilting his head. His look switches from Levi to the lake, as if inviting him to dive in. Levi is not sure what to say. The purity and simplicity is entrancing to him, and he squats down and takes a further look. ''How can this...,'' he asks, but his voice evens out, not knowing how to formulate his sentence.

Armin steps closer as well and sits down on the grass just a little away from the border. ''It's naturally kept,'' he says, sounding fascinated just as much. Levi dips his fingers in it, lets them intrude the blank surface slowly, and shivers due the coldness of the water. Compared to the weather, it should be at least several degrees warmer – but this is cool and refreshing.

''Not everyone uses this waterhole,'' Armin continues. Levi blinks and looks at him in questioning. ''Only those who are heavily spiritually influenced can see what you are seeing. The lake rejects whomever unworthy decides to peek,'' he says and leans forward too, eyeing the lake with something almost fond in his eyes. ''Spiritually influenced?'' Levi repeats, looking puzzled by the words.

''There are many gods in the cycle of living. Some we make up, and some who controls the flow of earth and the individual. We cannot for sure say which rights are. There are not just one god, and there will never be. Everything has its core, of course, but some cores are made up from varied inputs that melt into one, in the process creating a balance – a flow or a cycle. The world is full of life that our species are not able to see with our human eyes. Spiritual creatures, individuals and flows. The human is made of the biological mass, but also spiritual waves melted into one, and some are more in contact with the flow in their bodies than others are,'' Armin explains thoroughly, eyes tracing the contour of the waterhole.

He continues, ''you are born with different inputs from your creators and their flows as theirs melted together when they made you. Parents. As you live, depending on your environment, you create and absorb other flows, barriers and differences. The flow in your body can change depending on what you experience. You can get in contact with your flow, but you can also detach from it, leave it in oblivion – or create a barrier or crack there. The cracks can occur from traumatizing events, which affects your mental state. Angering spirits of life can also have its consequences.''

Levi is not one to believe in gods, spirits or anything alike, because throughout his life, what he has ever experienced has been sorrow. If there is a god – any mercy at all, then why had he been treated as he had back then. Left behind, spat on, put aside. He squints his eyes and finds himself in wonder by what Armin is telling him – but also somewhat angered.

Armin is suddenly in front of him, placing a hand on his naked shoulder. The motion is sudden, but soothes him, and he automatically exhales a shaky breath. Armin stares into his eyes, and they then flicker around him, as if outlining something drafting around his form. Subsequently, he withdraws again and sits in front of him like before.

They sit in silence for a while.

''You might think your purity is long gone,'' the blonde says, looking serious but understanding as well. His eyes are honest and bared, yet Levi feels like he is the one being seen through. ''and it can change as well. However, as long as your intentions are pure from the heart – from the roots of your core, the purity is not gone. Despite loneliness carved from your childhood – your child still lives in you. You were born to be something different from what you think. What you do is all up to yourself, though – and in the clan you live, there is no danger for you - there is comfort and comrades.''

Armin places a hand upon Levi's heart. ''However, without the knowledge of it, you are much more in contact with your flow than what you think. Because your core is true, and you are not aggressive by nature. The core that defines you is feral – raw and lively – ought to be in contact with the creatures many cannot see.''

He furrows his brows then. ''This is not said to condemn those who are not feral. As mentioned, there are other gods and ways of living. The spiritual is not the only one, and everyone has their place in the world – no matter what intentions their hearts might bear. You can defy your nature and create your own as well. There is always a choice, albeit some are forced into a different nature not by choice.''

Levi opens his mouth but closes it again. ''What are you trying to tell me?''

A somewhat cheeky smile emerges upon the blonde's lips. ''The best hunters are those who are in contact with the nature. Who knows the flow of living – not only their own, but from their prey and comrades as well. Have you ever wondered why you are such a good hunter?'' he says instead, and Levi huffs, although he smiles, barely.

''How do you know this?'' he then asks, seeing as he cannot receive a proper answer on the other hand.

''I'm the shaman of the tribe,'' Armin says. ''Wisdom and contact is my power.''

Levi is not sure what he is to believe, but for some reason – the way Armin speaks, the way he looks comfortable just where he is, in the nature – as if it is a second layer of skin, he just seems believable. He knows what he is talking about – not because he has obtained it, but simply because it is a matter of course. As natural as breathing the air to him.

''Eren should originally have been the shaman,'' Armin suddenly says.

This does pick Levi's interest. ''Is he spiritually influenced as well?''

''Not in the same way. Wisdom has never been his strongest point,'' he mutters, chuckling in the end.

Meanwhile, Levi dips his fingers in the pure-looking water once more, meddling them around there – although his eyes stay on Armin.

''Eren is feral in every aspect. As close to the flow of his nature as can be. To put it frankly, you could say that he is right where he is supposed to be – where his body was accustomed to be. The difference here though is that he could still be a bad person – hold impure intentions despite being in his decided nature. However, he is not. Despite the rage he holds and had held for many years, it is rooted for the sake of helping the individuals – his people. That is why he has become a great chief instead.''

Levi perks up at this, shaking the water droplets off his fingers as he turns his attention to Armin whole-heartedly.

''Rage?'' he asks. If Eren is supposed to be anything, it would not be angry – or a trigger.

However, the blue-eyed only but nods, looking troubled for a second. His fingers drum on his shins, and he sighs. ''Rage. Grisha, the chief who managed the crowd before – was not…,'' his words even out.

Levi waits.

''Eren's father was something else. His intentions were pure, but his actions created a ruckus. He led war. This tribe was once mighty and influenced the region here around and its going – but the chief led war with the other clans around. He conquered both tribes and clans of different sizes. Nevertheless, every action made in greed will have its backfiring. His tribe suffered severe pain when it all came back. The tribe died out, slowly, and managed the past years in low numbers, since most had died in the slash. There, Eren's mother had died as well – the chief's beloved one.''

Something swells in Levi's chest. He has heard this story before, he realizes. It is a common story of what greed will cause, and is one mentioned to all members in the clans who even as much as dares mentioning war as a solution.

''The name of your tribe… Jaeger?''

''It is.''

Levi feels as if he is supposed to know this – supposed to know such an important thing about Eren. But he does not, and he looks at Armin, wanting to know more – so much more. Everything there is to know about Eren.

''I've known Eren since birth. He has always been a troublemaker. He carries the guilt of what his father has done. He fought with his emotions and felt too much. He can be dense, but his intentions are good. And-''

Armin smiles widely now, genuine.

''- I can see that you have affected him.''

Levi swallows and wants to ask – what does this mean?, but only continues his staring, subconsciously leaning forward.

''Something changed when Eren came home from hunting one day – months ago. His ever rage-filled and troubled heart had found rest for a while, and his flow was steady and calm…,'' Armin looks fond, hovering a hand over his own heart as if obtaining peace just from saying this. ''…instead of feverous and hectic. The flow surrounding him, his aura, was warm and welcoming. Serene.''

The air is warm and prickles on Levi's skin, but all he can pay attention is the beating of his heart – as if it clogs in his throat.

Armin chuckles again, shaking on his head, like a parent regarding its foolish, but good-willed child. ''He had gone to me and said he had seen the northern light shine and bend around a certain person he found in the Magnus woods – far from here. He said it was the brightest light he had ever seen, and the person was the most beautiful creature he had ever led his eyes upon. He said he was as if in trance and that he could not understand the person, but read its flow and intentions. He felt drawn to the person in an unfathomable way and acted without thinking, and felt bad afterwards for his actions, but also empty.''

''He…-'' Levi's breath hitches.

''For the months coming, he went out to the forest so far away – to reunite with the person, but also to apologize for his actions – making offering gifts and things alike, asked what the different animals meant. Even when Grisha died and he had to take the responsibility as the chief, he still went to the forest occasionally. He was much more serene – determined than he had ever been before. His flow had changed. He became a good chief, even at such a young age, bearing responsibility that is perceived as impossible.''

Just when Levi expects more to come, Armin bares his palm and leads it to the waterhole. ''Wash yourself while I explain,'' he suggests, raising himself as he takes a few steps back. There is something different about the waterhole now. It is still pure and entrancing, but strange colors ebbs in the middle, sways lazily in the air around it – along with dust-looking particles that shine in the sunlight.

Levi undresses himself and slips into the water, slowly, shivering due the coldness of it. However, the temperature changes when the water reaches his waist. Suddenly, he feels warm and tender inside. The water is still calm despite his rustling. The colors grow stronger – a variation of teal, light red and blue – followed by other unique combinations.

''One day,'' he hears behind him, and he turns around, floating lightly in the water.

''- Eren said the spirits had talked to him. Given him something. From the bonfire one evening in the normalcy, the flames had gone teal and red, combined and died down. In the ashes, a wolf's head was drawn, and voices whispered. He had gotten allowance to carve from one of the holy trees in the forest, and so he had done. The tree he had carved had turned into marble in his hands, colored and shaped – once more, as a wolf's head.''

Levi draws a hand up to the necklace around his neck, running a few fingers over the polished surface of the coin.

''He did not tell me this. I knew.''

Armin sits down again. ''There goes an old saying, one from the origin of our tribe and beliefs – that each individual has its natural state – its spirit animal and other self that defines the individual, its skills. However, the animal Eren drew out was not his own spirit animal. The one who can draw your spirit animal – your origin, out, varies. It is mostly said to be your soul mate, the one who is compatible with you, reads your flow and your being. He drew out yours.''

The water glows now, and the world seems brighter. The sky changes color in Levi's view – just briefly, like some strange filter surges through. The dust-looking particles float peacefully in the air, glowing too. He hears voices, small voices – muttering. It should be annoying and alarming, but is not. It sounds like a flow of life coming through.

''The waterhole is the font of birth. The children of the tribe are washed here after birth in a welcome – for them to be get in contact with the spirits and the nature here. For some it works, for some it do not. You can come later and be swept here – and the water will respond to you, depending on your nature, your intentions and your flow.'' Armin squats down. ''You're feral, if you want to. The waterhole helps you encourage your nature and accepts you, helps your natural instincts and skills to become more prominent. What you see around you is just a glimpse of the spiritual world, its creatures and such alike.''

The blonde raises himself again and sends Levi a smile. ''What you do with this knowledge is, of course, up to you. I'll see you in the evening when another banquet will be held.''

* * *

Levi is left alone with only but himself, floating in the entrancing water. Left with a hurricane of thoughts for him to settle inside his head. He inhales noisily – diving into the water. He lies on the bottom of the waterhole and looks up at the sky, which, from down here, looks like an array of exotic colors blurred together. The whispers continue ebbing inside his head, but in a meticulous way, that sounds more like normalcy to him. He feels strangely at home.

He stays around the waterhole for hours. He cannot seem to sort out his thoughts, and spends the time looking at the nature. He feels like he is reborn – with different colors to look at, different creatures and a different atmosphere surrounding him. He wants to hunt. He want to feel the rush he loves. He wants to be with Eren, learn more about Eren.

It feels like he has known Eren for years, even if that is decidedly not the case. The thought of Eren makes him feel at home. Meeting Eren here was like coming back home after a long, long journey away.

At last, he returns to the village.

* * *

It is not late yet, but the weather has gotten warmer and the village is even livelier. Levi only makes it to the outskirts of the city before he sees children running around, playing with one another – a game of tag. Their language and hissing noises still sound strange to Levi, but he perks up and even looks back when he thinks he catches some words out of it.

Amidst the walking, he hears Hange yell his name, followed by an arm swinging around his shoulder. Hange leans in and tuts cheekily. ''My, my – you're truly fitting in here. Wouldn't have seen that one coming,'' she grins, Levi huffs. He can feel how she is eyeing him closely. ''Unlucky intrusion this morning,'' Levi mentions off-handedly, albeit looking at her sideways. Hange releases a groan, whereas she afterwards ruffles Levi's hair with her hand, it being easy due the size difference.

She leads him towards some of the villagers that she has befriended, beckoning him to follow as she sits down with them in the circle they have. They all smile toothily and welcome her in the other language, making space for the both of them.

''Your name is Levi, isn't it?'' one of them asks, regarding him with curious eyes. All of them stare at Levi now – or, to be more exact, the necklace bound around his neck, inspecting him. ''Yes,'' he says, puzzled by the easiness of the conversation. They ask some more questions, which turns into a chat about his own home village. Hange is strangely quiet, sitting next to him, eyeing him just as much – more than the usual.

''Levi, You're **growling**,'' she suddenly says amidst the conversation, and Levi stops talking – so does the other villagers. He looks at her with furrowed brows. ''I don't know what you guys are talking about,'' she continues, looking around wildly. ''I don't speak tribe,'' she says and laughs, but looks more fascinated than anything else.

The villagers have not even spoken much else than tribe throughout the conversation, and Levi has somehow latched onto the conversation – switched language without the knowledge of having done so, despite the realization makes his brain go slow, and now the villagers are only grunting again. It reduces so he does not understand them anymore, and he swallows heavily, not getting the situation.

He raises himself slowly, excusing himself. His head is throbbing slightly, and the fact that the village had seemed foreign and strange to him but now looks familiar and welcoming, is the strangest thing of them all.

He walks mindlessly, and nearly falls over when someone run past him, turning even more surprised when he sees children run after the person. He stops up and looks after them as the man fake-falls further head, and the children jump onto him and run around him, laughing mingled with the occasional growling. ''Eren, we got you!'' Levi hears – not knowing why he understands it, and he realizes it is Eren there, chuckling while pretending to be wrestling with all his might with one of the kids.

The clan meeting for today must have been over, and this is the first thing Eren does.

Levi just stands there, and from looking at how Eren smiles heartily at the children, it rustles something deeply inside his chest. He barely pays attention to how the whispering in his ears grows a little louder – sounding a lot like Eren's voice, like a steady flow of his feelings. The glowing dust particles from before flow around him, ever so slowly, and colors ebb there in lazy waves – barely prominent, but still there.

Then their eyes meet, and the smile on Eren's face falters just shortly, before it turns an inch wider in an even bigger grin. He raises himself immediately, and playfully pokes at the persistent kid that tried to wrestle him, the others waling at this – wanting to be a part of it too. Eren clicks his tongue at the children, telling them something, subsequently heading toward Levi.

They stand in front of each other – Eren looking down at him with fond eyes. The sun is ever so slowly going down, and only the rays of the sun mark half of Eren's face. ''Eren,'' Levi says. Eren's face lights up at this, and despite his appearance – the muscles and mature face, his expression is boyish and that of an excited, beloved child. Eren cannot keep his fingers away. He encircles Levi in a warm embrace, holding him close. They breathe in one another's scents and Eren can feel Levi smile against his throat.


	4. Merge

It has been a month since I last updated this, but I am glad some of you still stick around, heh.  
Some of you guys said you wanted some more scenes with Eren and Levi together, so I will grant you just that.

When you come to the hunting scene I suggest you to listen to this in case you would like some extreme tension (go to 0:54):  
watch?v=S4v5mHYH03M

Hope you enjoy.

* * *

The thought that the grand meeting will soon be over in a few days has been in Levi's mind throughout the following days. He tries not to think about it though, and focuses on the present instead. His thinking makes him grow quiet, and Hange describes his face expression as downright scary during breakfast when he sits and stares at the forest, thinking.

* * *

The meeting between the chiefs goes on for a long while, but the sun is still high on the sky when Eren comes out of the main tent and greets his village, smiling one of his boyish trademark smiles.

The villagers are on their feet to respectfully greet the chiefs coming out. Levi stands from afar with his rigid posture that now turns a little slack, shoulders slouching instantly when he gets sight of Eren further ahead.

There has been an incessant lull ebbing around Eren that Levi cannot describe, something only Levi can see. Mild colors in filtered, fogged textures waving around him, just barely visible. Throughout the day, Levi has as well felt a tug in the back of his mind, a subconscious stream of sensations. Not words, but feelings and strange flows that he feels are linked to Eren somehow. Not that he minds, though, because rather than being outwitted by it, it has been a comforting lull cradling his own doings.

Eren's eyes light up and he looks strangely enough like a dog having a piece of meat wafted in front of it, corners of his mouth curling upwards. His pace quickens and at last, he stands in front of Levi, looking down at him. He is wearing his feather crown, which in overall makes his presence much bigger and majestic, although his presence always carries a sense of dignity nonetheless.

He does not lean in yet, but just stands there, looming a tad above Levi, given their height differences. Levi does not do anything either – eyes locking on each other, silence between them. Eren is smiling, but Levi is not. However, Levi somehow knows that Eren can feel the fondness and affection reaching him through whatever strange bond they share, and they stand there without talking – communicating through the bond. They let their flows reach one another, and Levi notes an immense sensation of happiness flowing through his body that is not his own, but matches what he is feeling himself.

In that moment, Levi wonders why it is them being together, sharing this. When they first met, Levi did not have to know much about Eren to know that they were and are worlds apart. Both in what they have been through, but also in regards to their personalities. Eren continuously carries this boyishness with him – despite having had a tragic childhood without a mother and one war fanatical father, while Levi lost his own boyishness long ago.

Eren is somehow innocent – and at the same time not. He is bipolar at some aspects, seeming innocent at times, but then have his moments where everything about him is intense and knowing – raw, almost fanatic. He will sometimes redouble his effort even when he has forgotten his aim, a thing passed on from his father who once became too deeply invested. Levi knows this – reads it in Eren's flow – the stream in the back of his mind.

This only means that Eren can read Levi too, though, and Levi is no better.

Putting things into perspective, they might not be worlds apart. They both share a sort of brokenness to them that lingers inside them and makes them who they are, and makes them profitable for one another in a peculiar way.

A hidden glint in his heart that has only flared once or twice before makes its presence apparent, filling him with a fondness he has longed for.

Because the look in Eren's eyes is not blind, but not condemning either, despite being able to see through Levi. He sees Levi and reads whom he is, yet it continues being there. The affection is glazed over his eyes as he finally leans down and nudges his nose tip against Levi's, giving him a chaste Eskimo kiss that carries much more love than anything else does.

Levi closes his eyes and they stand there, resting their nose tips together. A small smile appears on his mouth, just for Eren to see.

* * *

Levi has no spare clothes, but wears a pair of woolen leggings of a kind, along with a leather chest plate. Eren convinces him to have a few feathers attached to his hair, although the actual speaking between them is still clipped and a little lacking, despite Levi slowly but deftly learning their language – naturally. They sit with a few of the women and children of the village, and some men are there too, as Eren fiddles with Levi's hair and excitedly chooses a white and gray feather.

Even though he just barely goes along with it, Levi has a tour of face painting too, with villagers sitting in front of him cross-legged. He does not like having other people's fingers in his face, but allows them this time – and strangely enough finds it familiar, as if it is something he should have been doing a long time ago. A sense of belonging lingers around.

A man and a woman snarl at each other because they cannot agree as to what design to make. Levi bites the inside of cheek, because he does have something in mind, but he does not want to seem too eager. At last, he offers an idea, but says it shortly under his breath, like a small complaint. The painters grin though and welcome it. They choose a pale color here as well, simple dark gray and black colors streaked close to his eyes – a zigzag line reaching the corners of his eyes on each side, along with a vertical line on his forehead stopping just above the split between his eyebrows.

Eren looks giddy on the sideline and Hange and Olou joins in and wants some too. Levi grumbles slightly but relents, letting them have their way. He cannot help but to smile as Eren leans in on one point and a wave of arousal from his side spikes through the bond just shortly.

Afterwards, Eren too gets some face painting. Today, he goes for something bold and remarkable. His face is covered in red from the beginning of his forehead to the middle of his nose, and where it ends it is underlined with a white streak to frame it. It goes well with his chief hat and makes him look more in character with his role as the leader, and his teal eyes seem even brighter, raw and real. It astounds Levi when he gets a better look of him, and he feels pride from being with Eren – with this beautiful man and his perfect imperfections.

Eren takes Levi by his hand and leads him to the tents where they store weapons, armor and such items alike – crafters walking around there, nodding their heads in a greeting. Unlike the storage rooms Levi have in his own clan, this looks almost like an exhibition of art and tree carvings. There are varied designs of the weapons, and each one never has the same pattern carved in the handle.

Levi especially takes a liking to one of the bows they have, spotting it lying between the lot. He picks it up and turns it, feeling the smooth material in his hands, brushing his fingers over the pattern carved in the handle. The bow is of a dark wooden material, and the pattern resembles a cloudlike stream mingling together with a growth of strict lines - a contrast. ''Do you like it?'' Eren asks him with a gentle hum, corner of his mouth pulled up as he lifts his eyebrows, gaze flickering from the bow and then to Levi. Levi looks down at it and then up at Eren again, nodding. ''There is something about it,'' he responds, and his handling of rolling the r's are getting better.

''Then you can have it,'' Eren says and notifies one of the crafters.

The craftsman takes it out of Levi's hands and smoothens his hands along it – chanting something softly under his breath that Levi does not get the hang of. He then kneels down and holds it up for Levi to take, and Levi blinks his eyes, perplexed.

Eren stands in the background and follows the doings closely, looking intense. The rest of the artisans view the scene too.

Levi takes the bow, considering that he must be experiencing yet another one of their rituals.

Eren tells him that it is a way of recognizing one in the tribe as a hunter when they obtain their first weapon, and that it is usually celebrated in a much bigger event – held for the young protectors getting their first daggers.

Something sinks to the pit of Levi's stomach, because he knows he is not a part of their tribe by official terms, and that he dutifully has his own tribe, his own family, to return to.

Eren must sense his discomfort or perplexity, because he leans forward to kiss his forehead, not saying anything – but understands. ''Consider it a gift,'' he says then and changes the meaning, which relieves Levi by far. He expresses his gratitude by kissing Eren's shoulder slowly, a fond gesture.

* * *

They go out hunting.

Levi with his new bow and Eren who has his dagger. Levi remembers that he had left the dagger in the Magnus woods back then almost as an exchange when he received the necklace, and it must mean that within that time, Eren did come back to see it again. Even there, they had communicated with each other without knowing how much it meant or would mean in the future.

Now they are here, and Levi feels weird hunting with someone, a task he rarely does. He prefers to do it alone, except if it is with Hange or some of the other close to him. Going on raids or hunting with others had only proved to be difficult and risky back in time. Memories has it that hunting gives you a certain responsibility for the ones you go with, because things can end up bad, and survivors guilt is not something anyone wants to experience. It is not a feeling Levi takes lightly on.

However, hunting with Eren is something else. First, Levi wonders why Eren would go hunting wearing his chief hat and bright face painting, but on the other hand, it only shows a certain headstrongness not many carry. Armin had said that Eren is likely feral in every aspect, and walking here – bare-footed, wearing his feather crown and a dagger fastened in a belt on the little of his back – is just what he does. As he walks in the forest, his composure is different and his way of walking is sturdy. His shoulders are straightened, eyes fixed and the air around him changes. He does not talk or say a word, although he occasionally looks back at Levi to flash him a smile or to assure he is there.

It reminds Levi of himself – when he feels as if he is in his element and nothing else matters, other than the feeling of being alive, and of hunting and being one with the nature surrounding him.

Eren looks completely content here, as if doing this is as natural as breathing. He is flexible when they have to crouch and crawl through growth. He does it without a complaint or a tick at his eyebrow in annoyance – he just does it. He does stand out given his appearance, but he is quiet and his movements are smooth and thought-through, footsteps barely audible when treading upon the forest floor.

When he leans forward and half-hides behind the trunk of a big tree, nestled between plants, he is one with his surroundings. Ahead a small opening, a deer trots around peacefully. Its ears flicker around to sense any noises around it, but there are nothing – and Levi's eyes are not even directed towards the animal, but lingers on Eren instead.

Everything about Eren is captivating to Levi – from the way the look in his eyes changes, to the way his shoulders hunch up and he leans forward. He tilts his head and his lips are drawn in a tight line. His dark brows are knotted together in concentration, and his rough but deft fingers lock around the handle on his dagger, slowly and patiently. His shoulders are still hunched, and he takes stance almost as a predator about to pounce its prey. For a moment, he reminds Levi of the cougar from before, with its steady movements and majestic flank and fur, its strength and beauty in a combination.

Eren is soundless and deft when he steps closer, the air around him tense and crisp when he moves forward. Levi stays behind, watching the scene in fascination. He means to go ahead and follow along – do his part of the work, but ends up for once wanting to watch instead of doing the actions.

It is quiet, and the air is warm. The growth surrounding them is vigorous and bright green, and a soft buzzing of bugs in the distance simmers here and there. There are voices again in the back of Levi's mind, but this time it is not only Eren's presence lingering there, but also the presence of much more – of others. He hears the soft thumps of a heartbeat beating in the distance – like a steady pulse running. It merges with his own, and when he looks at the deer, it is as if their flows are one. As if he can sense its movements, its mood and its presence. It is like back when he was lying on the bottom of the waterhole while looking up, and noises and presences filled his mind and being – back when he had felt as if he was one with the world.

It happens again – the slow filter surging over the sky just slowly, mingling in the trees. A soft color of pastel floating there in lazy waves, a steady stream of life going through his head as he breathes in and out slowly to the sound of lives around him.

There is Eren too, whose from is lighted up when he steps into the sunlight – back rounded a bit as he takes stance the further he gets, and the deer has noticed nothing yet. The rays of sunshine makes his tanned skin more prominent, as well as his exotic features in general. Levi can see how the muscles in his back are flexing slightly to adjust, how his shoulder blades roll beneath the appendages of the feather crown when he readies himself for the final action - for when the scythe will have its draw.

Everything is dimmed the moment his feet dig into the ground before he takes off. It is quick and brutal, but merciful. Eren lounges forward, almost soundlessly too, dagger drawn out of its sheathe as he tackles the deer around its neck. He is like a predator who knows where the pulse is running, where its soft spot is and where to aim. His biceps are flexing maddeningly and the scene almost looks unreal as he has got the deer trapped and does the same as he did with the cougar – this time with just one secure draw of his dagger.

Levi does not want to know how it would be like to fight Eren in a hand-to-hand combat, he thinks. While Levi is usually quick and deft – Eren is a feral hunter with the strength to do his actions, a predator who looms from afar and slowly catches up on its prey, pouncing it with all he has. However, he does not let the animal suffer, and finishes his work quickly with proper draws.

He holds the deer down until it stops moving completely. When he is done, his eyes are still fixed and focused - gaze running along the deer to see if everything is in check.

Levi comes out of his hiding place and looks the deer over. His eyes stay on Eren then when he raises himself, and this time there are only blood on the dagger and a bit of his fingertips, but not more than that.

Something turns in the atmosphere as they stand there in the natural sounds of a rich forest life, looking each other in the eye.

Then, Levi steps forward and over the deer, taking a hold of the smaller necklaces around Eren's throat and brings him down, crashing their lips together, mouth still open a bit so that their teeth clank. Eren does not even falter once and just goes along with it when Levi presses him down and pushes him to the ground, straddling him as the other lies on his back on the moss and forest floor.

Levi still has a hand tangled in Eren's necklaces, and when the taller tries to raise himself slightly to kiss the other, Levi yanks him down again – taking control. He pulls his lips back and bares his teeth warningly, growling as he leans in and hovers his face just above Eren's, unfalteringly staring into those teal eyes. He sees how the pupils expand, eyes almost swallowed by onyx.

His other hand is grasping Eren's bicep, clenching there when he rubs against him with a rolls his hips, grinding against his crotch from where he sits on his lap. He pretends to lean in fully and kiss Eren, but draws back just when their lips almost touch, still growling in a low tune, nipping at his lower lip instead. A deep rumble escapes from Eren's chest, a snarl so deep and practiced it has come from deep down. He grabs Levi by his thighs and presses there, one of them running along his form to grab him by the hip, pressing him down against himself.

Levi is too distracted with Eren's presence and their doings to do anything about getting the blood on Eren's fingers smeared on his pants, feeling as if in a heated frenzy. It is as if they merge in another sense, their movements match one another, this time rowdily, and with tougher pushing than the first time they were together. Levi can feel a scorching spike of arousal run along his spine, run along his inner, and this is not his own, but Eren's arousal and chaotic state of unfurling warmth that tangles with Levi's own desire.

Eren groans and a deep exhale leaves his lips when Levi presses harder and his grasp tightens. They press their lips together and Eren is quick to slip his tongue into the other's mouth, brushing the tip along the flat of the teeth. Then, in a whisk, as they break apart from the kiss, Eren swaps their positions in a rollover.

This time, however, he turns him around so that he lies on his stomach - almost with a force that should hurt, but makes Levi moan instead with gruffness.

Levi pretends to fight against it and scrambles ahead, only to have his torso pinned down again, Eren holding one hand on his shoulder and the other on his hip, clenching in the fabric of his pants, keeping him in place. Levi claws at the earth and juts his ass willingly against Eren, kneecaps digging into the earth as the brunette looms above him and presses his pelvis against him from behind.

Eren groans and forcefully tugs down in the pants, Levi moaning when the air hits his arousal as it is exposed. He feels warm between his legs, warmer than ever before. His mind is clouded and there is only the arousal embedded in the back of his mind – the feeling of having Eren close - an animalistic need surging inside his body, as if in a heat.

Eren leans forward so that Levi can feel his abdominal muscles flex against the small bend in his back. He hears a deep rumble close to his ear, Eren's warm breath fanning over the shell of his ear first, and then his throat. Eren buries his face in the space between Levi's throat and shoulder, inhaling the smell there, still growling. The appendages of the feather crown tickles Levi's sides as they are splayed on each side, hanging there, sometimes brushing his sides.

He tenses in anticipation when he feels how Eren shortly lets go of his hip to tug down his own quilt. Seconds later, he feels Eren's hand spread his buttocks to line his cock between them. He presses in at first slowly until he gets the cockhead in, and the sensation it creates still stings, but they have had intercourse a few times since the first night, and Levi is getting used to it, being more welcoming now.

Then, Eren rams into him with a quick snap of his hips, this time ruthless with the force he uses. The side of Levi's face and his chest is pressed against the earth by the motion, legs shaking by the pressure when Eren repeats the motion as his breath comes out in warm puffs against his skin for each thrust.

Levi's moans come out hoarse and sometimes cut off when rammed into again, and his fingers are digging into the moss, knuckles turning white by the force he uses. He struggles to keep upright, since Eren is leaned in on him and puts his weight there along with the added pressure for every time he fucks into him.

He gasps when Eren sinks his sharp canine teeth into his skin at his shoulder, and this time harsher and enough to nearly draw a bit of blood. However, he does not let go, and he does it to hold Levi in place in every aspect, taking the full control.

Levi is trembling – both from the strain and from the pleasure he feels, pushed against the ground repeatedly as he moans Eren's name, breathing raggedly, and voice hoarse.

He comes first, shaking in small spasms and nearly collapsing by the tight feeling in his gut ebbing out in warm waves, voice nearly gone now from the outbursts. Eren comes inside him shortly after, still holding him in place until he is done and his body does not jerk anymore in smaller movements. He lets go of Levi, holding one hand underneath him and along his stomach when he levers him down on the ground, letting him rest there as he breathes out.

He makes sure Levi is unhurt before doing anything else, inspecting him – licking the blood from the bite mark brightly imprinted along his shoulder.

He then lies down with him, drawing him into his embrace as Levi hugs him back just as tightly, and they lie together there, listening to their heartbeats.

''Love,'' Eren says – in Levi's language.

''I love Levi,'' he says then, leaning in to let their nose tips brush again.

Levi feels bubbly inside – exhausted and happy.

''I love Eren too.''

* * *

The next morning, the grand meeting has officially found place and the events and meetings are done. The varied clans pack up their stuff and say their goodbyes, and a heavy atmosphere lingers in the air like a dark cloud above the village.

Hange is crying as she hugs a pack of children tackling her to the ground as they lament, wanting her to stay. Erwin looks like the usual, but falls into a long chat with one of the other chiefs.

Levi feels dread lounge in his stomach, and he cannot find Eren anywhere yet, but people are packing up and so are his own clan members, Erwin patting his shoulder reassuringly when he says they have to go now.

Levi's eyes wander along the crowd to find those familiar teal eyes, the brown-haired stranger that now is no stranger, but his dearest love. Hange tugs in his wrist, and Levi feels panic arise in his chest.

Then, he hears that familiar voice, and an instant cape of comfort drapes over his shoulders. He looks behind him and Eren is standing there. Before he can do anything, Eren has closed the gap between them, and holds him tightly, as if he never wants to let go. Levi buries his face in his shoulder and breathes him in.

Levi does not cry.

Not as far as the people around him can see, but Eren's shoulder has wet marks left there when they draw apart, and Levi's eyes are red and a little strained. Eren takes a hold of his wrist and unties the necklace bound there, instead settling it around Levi's neck, cupping his cheek fondly afterwards.

''My love,'' Eren says.


	5. Absence

It is a tug in the back of his mind.

Not noticeable at first, but is continuously there.

The first steps away from Eren is a tug in the pit of his stomach. To show ones back to the one whose attention is required the most – is a feeling Levi has rarely felt before, but experiences as Hange pats his back and takes him by his wrist, tugging him along because he does not seem capable of moving himself.

Levi is not supposed to feel such things, or to act in such manners, given the responsibilities he bears due his rank. The fact that Eren has held his cheek and whispered words into his ear only tightens his gut feeling.

Levi does not look back to know that Eren follows him with his eyes until he is out of sight. He does not look back because he knows it will only strengthen his uneasiness.

Erwin's Heidan clan strides back and prepares their steeds for the long journey home. Levi feels strange everywhere, but pushes it aside and thinks of his obligations and devotion to his own clan. His lips are drawn in a tight line as he gets on his horse and maneuvers it correctly. None of his fellow beings ask him any questions regarding his mood, but do the average talk and ask when the next meeting will be held. Erwin lifts his head high and looks thoughtful for a moment, saying that the following event will presumably first be held in months' time, depending on the circumstances.

From there on, they travel the long way home.

* * *

Strangely, the first week goes by in a blur. Negotiations have been made between the clans, and the Heidan's upper ranks have been informed as well. Thus, Levi is sent out to proceed completing the tasks he are given, as well as to make sure that nothing goes wrong or anyone is tricked, working as a guardian in case of possible mishaps.

The trip to the Jaeger clan has definitely changed something within his mind. Not only his mind though, but also his demeanor and way of perceiving things – his way of interacting with people.

For an instance, it feels as if his senses have been heightened, and he is capable of sensing the individuals around him without needing to grant them a glance. He can sometimes hear their heartbeats – as if bonding with them automatically, depending on how concentrated he is. He can read their body language to a certain extent, study their appearance in a way he could not do before. It is not as if he can see through them, but it is a matter of paying attention to the smaller details that defines an individual and their way of living.

There are not only stories told in the way their eyes crinkle if they are happy or the way their fists will clench in case of disapproval, but much more than that. It is the way they talk, the way they move, the way they dress, the way they act if agreed with or unapproved of. There is so much to learn about the individuals surrounding himself, Levi gradually realizes.

Not that it easily changes the way Levi acts around people though, and he has always been seen as someone slightly unapproachable if the interaction happens outside matters of importance. It does have a turn though, just a teensy bit – judging by the way his body turns to the speaker and he actually grants them worthy attention, discovering a newfound interest in the people around him, as well as a strange need for physical contact.

Levi has a policy that tells him not to get too close to people, given earlier occurrences in his life. One way or another, he was adopted by Hange's parents and Hange, as well as the upper rank members that have kept him company for many years, have been his only family. He is rapt with his tongue – impatient and unwelcoming because that was how he had to be when he was just a lad.

Now, he slowly accommodates to the people around him, studies them – with no less grim or thorough staring though, but the change is there, and it befuddles him.

Another thing that has caught his attention is the flow that continues to run in the back of his mind. It was mostly apparent when he had been interacting with Eren – occurred after he had talked with the shaman of the Jaeger tribe, Armin.

When interacting with others, Levi can feel their presence, but in a slightly different way. He remembers Armin's words, remembers something about a flow that fluidly travels through people and are what molds an individual into who they are – their origin and genes. It also counts as mental stability though, and Levi can feel it, even if it is not by much, but he can feel the people around him. Not just by their heartbeat, but he can sense their mood sometimes if he pays thorough attention to them.

It gets worse when he sits in front of them and looks them in the eyes and has a one-man conversation with the individual. Since he is barely used to dealing with his own emotions, it only becomes more peculiar or straining when he can sense the others.

* * *

One time when Olou sits next to him and small talks, it truly takes a toll on him. It is mostly Olou who rants ahead – and the talk is aimed towards Petra, the Kanji's chief daughter, who he has been hopelessly in love with for what seems like decades. Levi only bids in with smaller comments, not knowing whether Olou is aware of the fact that Hange and Petra have a less secretive relationship going on. Levi mostly pays attention to his own hands clasped together as they sit around the lonesome bonfire that is yet to be lighted. The sky is gray and a little remorseful, only dusty raindrops washing over the landscapes ahead behind the tree ports protecting their village.

Olou talks about Petra's beautiful hair, talks about her gentle personality – and does it in a timid manner he does not put on show in public. Levi usually brushes the waves of a secondhand guilt or pity aside, but when he looks at Olou from the corner of his eyes, his form slumped and a little forlorn, something uncomfortable commences in his throat. He can feel the flow in the back of his mind being tugged in, the thoughts of unrequited love prickle his nerves as his hands become clammy and restless. He feels an unfamiliar need to pat Olou on the back and assure him that, as many other say, there are other fish in the sea. He feels the way a lonesome – an embarrassed sensation drapes over Olou's shoulders, and bonds with the feeling and feels sad for the other, one of his close members that he considers family.

It makes something in his stomach lurch, and the flow streaming within him goes feverish and prickly in an uncomfortable way. He finds it hard focusing with his eyes and he has to raise himself. Before leaving, he uncharacteristically gives Olou's shoulder a reassuring pinch – no words spoken for Olou to understand. It is not much, but means a lot more given that the gesture comes from Levi.

Around the same day, officially three weeks after the departure from the Jaeger meeting, Levi decides to go out. Putting the negotiations with other clans aside, Levi has not left the village on his own will – has not been out hunting either throughout the time.

His feet move by themselves and something tells him he has to get away, because to his eyes, the port walls are closing in on him and everything becomes snug around him, suffocating. He walks at first and nearly stumbles in his own cape, tumbling ahead with a heavy feeling in his gut that becomes more and more unbearable the more he moves. Upon leaving the village, he notices the worried glances he get from his peers, but when they try to grab him by his arms he bare his teeth and snarls at them – a feral growl that have them instantly backing away.

Then, he settles into running upon seeing their face expressions, and he does not know why he is running, but he keeps running until he has made it to the outer part of a close forest that he usually has to pass through to get to the familiar Magnus woods. He runs until he cannot breathe anymore and his throat feels raw – windpipe burning and his mouth completely dry. He gulps down the air and keeps stumbling, cannot allow himself to lie down. He falls over a branch though because his mind is turning, eyes unfocused.

The fall feels heavier than it should have, and his arms are trashing, grasping the dirt underneath him and at the bark of a tree as he tries to support himself and get up. His breathing comes out hoarse and foreign to him, and drool slithers down his chin. His knees buckle underneath him and the only thing holding his torso up is a hand on the nearest thick stem of a tree, along with his other hand clenching the earth.

His eyes are burning and his stomach feels so heavy as if it is about to budge and fall out of him. His heart is thumping furiously against his ribcage and when he gathers the strength to raise himself, it only takes ten seconds before he is on his knees again, emptying his stomach on the forest floor.

He wipes his mouth and feels a little better afterwards, but not by much. He raises himself and takes a few steps away, only making it to the next tree before he turns around and slides his back down and sits there against the trunk, looking up at the crowns of the trees nestled together high above him. It looks as if the crowns are lowering themselves like a boulder atop his shoulders, and he realizes that he is crying – sobbing hollowly, as one of his hands are grasping the front of his shirt where his heart is.

He notices that all the while he has been whispering something under his breath, it being the only thing he can possess the will to think of right now – Eren. Eren's name falls from his lips like a distant prayer, and another wave of nausea surges through his flow and makes him gasp and cry harder.

''My love,'' Eren had said at their departure and held his cheek. ''Take good care of yourself until we meet again.''

When Levi opens his eyes again, his heart stops beating for a moment. A cougar-like animal stands in front of him, but it is transparent and outlined by a teal light that flows off its form. It looks like a ghost, but has a spiritual presence. It draws closer to him, and for some reason, Levi is not afraid. Everything is still dizzy in his mind, but he partly sees the cougar as his eyes try to focus properly. He reaches a hand out for it and expects his palm to go through it, but it stays nestled atop its head as it nuzzles into the touch.

Simultaneously, the necklace he has been given by Eren simmers against his throat, spreading out waves of something warm and familiar. He distantly sees light emit from it, as it seems to react to the cougar's presence.

''Levi,'' he hears in the back of his mind, and it is Eren's voice that flows and warmly surges in his veins, making his breath even out and the nauseating sensation slowly disappear. ''Eren,'' Levi calls out in return, and it is barely audible given the strain in his throat and his hoarse voice. ''Eren,'' he repeats again, and he is crying again, and he feels pathetic and apologetic for the gesture – for crying. He feels ashamed. The cougar lines up to him, spreads itself along his lap, and nuzzles its head against his stomach as it lies there, weightless but still present and warm.

Levi feels his eyes closing, and the incessant tug in the back of his mind finally stops, even if it is just for a brief moment – after three weeks of constant nagging.

His sight turns dark and he slips into unconsciousness with Eren's name on his lips.

''..Levi?''

''Levi- can you hear me?''

**''Levi!''**

Levi wakes up with a jolt and finds himself nestled in someone's arms, and his eyes feel sore. He shields his eyes from the light that is not even bright, groaning. He hears a distant ''Thank the gods…,'' coming from another familiar voice.

When his eyes adjust, he sees that he is still in the forest from before, and the light is dim. He can outline Erwin looking down at him with uncharacteristically worried eyes, looking bound between seriousness and blatant worry. By his side, Hange is hovering behind him, and she has tears in her eyes.

''He's alive!'' she nearly screams and Levi groans by the loudness, ''silence, shitty brunette…,'' he murmurs, barely managing to clip the words out. Erwin huffs and arches a brow, while Hange looks unmistakably happy by the comment – one of the ordinaries.

They take him back to the village and the rest of the ranked members flock around him, Olou bidding in with a booming ''musta´ bonded with a pile of midden,'' before giving his shoulder a playful pat. Levi feels befuddled by the granted attention, and lots of the clan members he has never spoken to look relieved.

Settling in his private cobble cabin, Levi is put to bed as Erwin watches over him and Hange brings a bucket of heated water and starts washing him with a cloth, much to Levi's dismay. However, he feels sore all over and can barely resist the feeling of the warm cloth against him, being covered in dirt - with rifts spread along his hands from when he had clawed the bark on the trees.

''What happened? You were gone for almost two days,'' Erwin is the first one to ask as he comes closer, resting against one of the bed pillars. He wears his usually contemplative expression on his face. Levi is lucky that they are in the heat period of the year; otherwise, he could have frozen to death in the forest. He nearly chokes on air when told that he has been unconscious for two days, and suddenly realizes how hungry he is.

''Shoot if I know,'' he grumbles though and hisses under his breath when Hange rolls the cloth over one of the rifts on his back that Levi does not remember he has gotten. ''Looks like you've fought a bear,'' Hange murmurs. ''You're paler than a corpse,'' she continues and holds his hand up, alternatively looking at him. ''I always look rotten for wear,'' he responds, a scowl apparent on his face.

When they do not respond, he sighs and continues.

''I suddenly felt feverish and went out in the wood, vomited and passed out,'' he explains shortly, huffing.

Erwin is about to say something when Hange interrupts with a loud groan as she smacks the cloth upon her forehead, and Levi makes a grimace in distaste. ''I should have known!'' she moans and then drops her head in Levi's lap, while Levi continues to stare incredulously at her.

Erwin looks puzzled too. ''Should have known what, Hange?''

''I remember that I spoke with the shaman and he told me about the symptoms of absence between mates,'' she explains firstly, looking more fascinated than anything now as she leans in on Levi and inspects him closer.

Levi looks at her as if she has grown a second head, and Erwin looks bemused.

''You know Armin, right?'' she asks Levi.

Realization dawns him and he mutters out a sound in agreement.

''The shaman of the Jaeger tribe-,'' Hange turns around and speaks to Erwin. ''- told me that there would sometimes be severe symptoms if newly bonded mates are drawn apart.''

Levi blinks and realizes that Hange had been even more enthusiastic for the new culture in the feral tribe, and thus probably knows far more about their spiritual interests and culture than Levi himself does.

Erwin knows nothing though, but is soon to know the whole lot when Hange continues scrubbing Levi but rants ahead about the foreign culture from the bottom to top, not leaving any details of her knowledge out.

Levi groans loudly.

* * *

When Levi has rested enough and been fed, Hange tells him that there is no medical treatment for the symptoms he have been experiencing. She explains that the submissive partner, as some would in another term call an Omega, will definitely be vulnerable during the first time being apart from the Alpha.

''Omega?'' Levi repeats with enough vehement for it to radiate danger. Hange ignores him and continues anyhow. She tells him that during those times, the Omega is the most vulnerable and its flow is ever changing and unstable. The Omega needs to be looked after and requires lots of physical contact, food, warmth and emotional support.

Levi believes he nearly passes out from the words he are told, but he does notice the way he has had a strange interest in other people lately, speaking of accommodating to other individuals, as earlier mentioned.

''No,'' he says though.

Hange snorts. ''You need to,'' she says and waves the tree spoon in her palm, digging up some more porridge.

''Don't feed me, you blithering nas-'' he chokes when she forces the spoon between his lips and tips it. He murmurs something unintelligible but swallows the smudgy food, looking grumpy for wear.

''What a charming little omega you are,'' she winks and he curses a lot more, but does not fight it when she spoon-feeds him yet again.

''This is a dishonor,'' he growls, and she makes a cooing sound to make him open up again.

''Only if you make it such,'' she says, but she looks serious.

He does not comment on it.

Only his close members have been told about his state, and they all look surprised, some flustered, but Erwin only looks smug as ever and very amused.

However, after the more severe symptoms have kicked in, Levi does realize he has become slightly weaker. Not directly in terms of strength, and he is as muscular as before, but the only difference is his lack of energy. He feels clingy and needy all the time, and it all comes in waves that suddenly comes after the incident in the forest some days ago, given he has been lying in his bed for three days now.

''Do not touch me,'' Levi grumbles.

''Levi. You are the one who is touching me,'' Hange responds.

Levi latches his fingers to himself again and clenches them in his loose trousers as they sit outside. At first, he does not believe in what Hange said about a need for physical contact, but it slowly creeps upon him around the strangest of times. It is not by much, but he will sometimes inch closer to Hange, Petra, Gunther, Erd and even Olou.

One night where they are outside for a weekly sacrifice of corn for the sake of fertility and growth, he absently sneaks a hand closer to Moblit and holds him by the elbow. Moblit looks surprised by the gesture, and gives Hange a questioning look, whereas she gives him a nod. ''Question and I will snap your neck,'' Levi mutters, but there is no fire in it, and Moblit actually smiles and lets him inch closer and stand a little under his cape.

* * *

In the middle of the night, Levi suddenly wakes up. He jolts awake and sits straight up his bed. Something tell his feet to move, but this time it is a different message that directs his nerves and makes him shift underneath the woolen cover. He raises himself and dresses in warm clothes, but is hasty because the nagging gets stronger and stronger. The tugging is not unpleasant though, but rather persistent in a way that conveys his want and stubborn desire for contact.

He is in a hurry but manages to clip on his fur clothes and everything, prepared for the slightly chilly night. He curses all the while, and with a newfound energy, he sneaks out and takes one of his secret passages to get out the ports as he walks out in the night.

He does not even know where he is going at first, but realizes ever so slowly that the sensation lingering in his veins leads him to the forest he was in earlier, and then further ahead to the outskirts of the Magnus woods. It takes a great while, but he does not even feel exhausted as he just continues to walk.

Upon further entering of the wood, a path lights up and the strange filter from lying on the bottom of the waterhole before surges through, and he momentarily stops in his tracks to observe how the plants arise their leafs and smaller parts light up in pastel colors. He can see better now, and all of the varied colors are only apparent in the wood, shielded from the outside by the crowns of the trees that seem as if bunching together above, blocking the night sky.

Levi hear voices – slight murmuring and the awareness of other creatures – of life – simmers underneath his skin. He nearly jumps out of his skin when he sees a bear wander head, followed by its cubs. However, they are all lighted up like the cougar from the incident a week ago, varied colors flowing off their form. Voices carry along and follow their tails when they pass by. They do nothing but trot around and play with one another, the cubs snapping at each other. Other ghostly animals appear further ahead and around him, but they are all peaceful and show no threat.

There is a constant flow of life ebbing in the atmosphere, and Levi finds himself holding his breath as he turns around and observes the glistening nature.

The path from before lights up mildly, and Levi follows it, eyes darting around warily.

Despite the darkness, he slowly begins to realize where he is being led. He recognizes the plants, recognizes the area. It is where he first met Eren.

When he arrives, his heart flutters in his chest when he sees the figure in the middle of the area surrounded by trees. It is a ghostly, spiritual like presence as well, but it takes shape as a man – with broad familiar shoulders.

Levi is walking towards it, nearly stumbling on the way. The figure raises itself and despite being transparent, he recognizes the way the face is settled, the jawline, the nose, the almond shaped eyes.

His hands do not go through Eren when Levi steps closer and embraces him. They sink to the forest floor and Levi sits on his lap, straddling him as he buries his face in the juncture of Eren's neck. It is strange given the form Eren has appeared in, but like before, the presence is warm and there, albeit weightless and a little peculiar.

''Eren,'' Levi whispers, and he shivers when Eren's teal-framed long fingers travel down his back, given he is not wearing a cape this time.

Eren does not respond, and it seems that he cannot lead a conversation. For some reason, Levi understands, even though he is not sure why. He pliantly opens his lips when Eren closes in on him and kisses him softly. Eren radiates a supernatural sensation when his tongue brushes the roof of Levi's mouth, like some sort of energy that heats Levi's skin as he whimpers and draws himself as close as can be.

He feels a scorching heat pool in his stomach as he rubs against the other, quickly abandoning his shirt, gauntlets and other accessories as he pleads for more touches – for the strange thirst he has felt for weeks to be quenched. Eren says nothing all the while, but his plump lips turn in a smile. Eren himself is only wearing his feather crown and the clothing he wore the time they last departed.

He runs his hands softly along Levi's sides, down his chest and to his hips as he rests them there. As a contrast to Levi who is as if in a frenzy, moaning and frantic, Eren is calm but passionate. He eyes the other fondly as he dives down and flicks his tongue along one of Levi's teats, lapping it there slowly. Levi ruts against him restlessly, wanting further attention.

''Here-'' Levi murmurs between his hitched breathing after they have kissed and Eren has been as slow as ever to spoil and touch his body. He drags down Eren's clothing robe around his hips to put his arousal on display. Eren lovingly kisses Levi's neck all the while as if he has all the time in the world, making Levi go slow when lowering himself on Eren and takes his cock in while spreading his buttocks with both of his hands, wanting the contact.

Eren softly run his hands down Levi's back and moves along with him when Levi uses his shins as leverage to move up and down, still straddling Eren's lap. Levi clings to him and their foreheads are touching as they settle into a comfortable pace, and despite Eren being nearly transparent and aura-like, it is really him, his attentive and intense eyes looking right back at Levi.

After climaxing, Levi feels exhausted but safer than he has ever felt in the past weeks, and Eren lies down with him, embracing him with his arms as Levi slips into unconsciousness.

* * *

Upon waking, Levi is befuddled to realize that he is in his own cabin, safely underneath his cover – dressed in his nightgown as he had been before he went out in the forest. Hange comes in, blabbering about her hunting this morning, also complaining about Levi sleeping like a rock, and that she was unable to awake him this morning.

''You okay, Omega?'' Hange asks, and Levi does not even bother to correct the nickname she has given him.

Before he can answer, she leans over and inspects the side of his throat. ''I am aware you desire physical contact, but who have you been out bedding?'' she asks, looking a little wary.

Levi latches a hand onto his throat and feels a mark on the skin just above his necklace, outlining a deft bite-mark with his fingertips.

''Would you believe me if I told you I went to the Magnus woods and shagged spirit Eren last night?'' he asks instead, neutrally.

Hange turns quiet.

''Fascinating,'' she says.


End file.
